What Martin Odegaard did before Thomas Partey goal as Arteta outlines Arsenal steps for Nwaneri

Ode impact

Many have suggested that Arsenal are already out of the title race. Draws against Chelsea and Liverpool and defeats to Newcastle and Bournemouth left them nine points off the pace at the November international break. No side has ever toppled such a deficit before.

There is one thing the data can’t account for though. The superhuman factor that is Martin Odegaard.

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The Norwegian has only been back for two games, but his impact has been transformational. He grabbed an assist in a man of the match display against Chelsea. Against Nottingham Forest, though, he went up another level.

If there’s one player who Martin Odegaard’s return impacts the most it is Bukayo Saka. The England international has been great this season regardless, but with Odegaard at his back, he is a force of nature.

Aside from Matteo Kovacic and Rodri, no two outfield players who weren’t centre backs combined more often than Saka and Odegaard last season. The link up was back with devastating effect on Saturday.

Odegaard played 18 passes to Saka of which 12 went forward. Saka returned the favour by giving 18 balls of his own to his captain. These 36 combinations rendered four chances and a goal.

The goal - while a superb demonstration of Saka’s sheer determination to find the net - was a perfect showing of their devastating partnership on the right inside channel.

“That's chemistry,” Mikel Arteta said of the pair in his post-match press conference. “Sometimes you meet somebody, straight away you make eye contact and something flows. That's the case with those two.

“That's what's happened, it happens off the field it happens on the field and with many others as well. That's something in football that is very difficult to say.

“But when you put them together in the right spaces, things flourish and things happen naturally. With others, you try to force it and it doesn't work. With these two we are very lucky to have them.”

Even though he didn’t get the assist, Odegaard had a hand in the second goal too. His run forward to the byline created acres of space for Thomas Partey to stroll into. Saka saw the Ghanaian and provided him with the ammo to unleash from the edge of the box. It was subtle, but in the 4-4-2 set up Arsenal have played in Odegaard’s absence it simply wouldn’t have happened.

With Odegaard’s instant impact, it’s hard not to question what might have been for Arsenal. But has he left it too late to help Arsenal in the title race? Arteta doesn’t think so just yet.

“To have these kind of players in the team is always the right time,” the Spaniard said.

Arsenal are determined not to lose him again and took him off early after protecting him over the international break. They know he could be their last card to play in this title race.

Squad depth shows

When asked what the key to consistency was before the game, Mikel Arteta was clear - “availability.”

For the first time in a while he had that against Nottingham Forest. Arsenal have been getting by with patchwork training sessions for most of the season, but this week they had a near fit squad for the first time in months. It quite literally changed the game.

Thomas Partey had been rested but was able to come on and score. Subs Raheem Sterling and Ethan Nwaneri then combined to make the game safe. Such a transformational luxury is one that Arteta hasn’t had for a long time now and you could sense his delight at full time.

“I think I sensed a great energy in the last 48 hours,” he said. “The way everybody came back, I sensed a great togetherness and desire to change the situation and what has been a different period for us with all the situations that we had to come across. And the team is there straight away from the beginning. It was a flow, it was a dominance, there was an enthusiasm about it. That is why I demanded. We scored a goal, it should have been two, or three in the first half.

“It was a total effort of the team. Because all the players have to come in and I have to take Jorgi out because of the yellow card. Thomas comes in and straight away scores the goal, Raz comes in and gets the assist, Ethan comes in and scores a goal, Alex gives us a different kind of dominance there, Jakub comes in to get some minutes in the legs.

“You don't play Declan, you don't play Martinelli, you don't play Kai Havertz. And there's always that question, is it right or wrong? And I felt it because I think the team needed that they all feel important and they have a real chance. And some of the players, the way they trained while we were here it was unbelievable. I have to praise that.”

This Arsenal squad feels deep and motivated. It could turn the title race back in their favour.

Nwaneri grabs another opportunity

It’s almost no longer a surprise that Ethan Nwaneri looks brilliant off the bench. The 17-year-old grabbed yet another opportunity on Saturday after replacing the tiring Martin Odegaard.

Within seconds he had done a stepover to get away from Ryan Yates before firing just wide of Matz Sels’s post. On the second occasion he would make no mistake.

Nwaneri’s finish to Raheem Sterling’s low cross may have looked easy but it was anything but. The composure and presence of mind to elect for the near-post effort that caught Sels off guard is exactly why Arteta has been keen to have him in the side. Now though he is keen not to over-expose him.

“I am responsible to build a career for him,” he said of the 17-year-old. “You have to do that brick by brick. Today he put another brick. Now we have to put another cement, make sure it doesn’t get dry so we can put another one and that will stick. Then we put one more layer, one more layer.

“If you want to put five in a row believe me it won’t work. We have to manage not only his expectation but his load as well, which is really important.”

This is the key for Nwaneri now. Those calling for him to start every game will be disappointed. Arteta is keen to ease the talented youngster in.