Martin Odegaard has completed his mission to challenge Nicolas Pepe and Granit Xhaka at Arsenal
Martin Odegaard’s assignment was finished on Saturday afternoon.
Arsenal scored the game’s only goal in a 1-0 win over Burnley at Turf Moor, giving them back-to-back Premier League victories for the first time this season.
Odegaard’s second league goal for Arsenal – the other coming in last season’s North London derby victory over Tottenham Hotspur – and it was one he will’up to take the resulting set-piece, wonderfully looping the ball past a helpless Nick Pope in the 30th minute.
Some Arsenal fans may have been surprised to see Odegaard take the free-kick, but based on what the attacking midfielder has already said about his best ever goal, he should now be the club’s first-choice taker.
“I think the best goal I ever scored was a free-kick for the national team [under-21s] against Kosovo,” he said.
During his loan spell from Real Madrid, he told Arsenal Media.
Odegaard’s set-piece talent was on display a few years earlier to what he did against the Clarets, and you can see it right here.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, on the other hand, has a variety of players at his disposal who are all capable of scoring directly from a free-kick.
When the Gunners are handed a set-piece in a dangerous area, Nicolas Pepe, Alexandre Lacazette, Granit Xhaka, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are generally located over the ball.
Last season, Xhaka scored a spectacular free-kick against Chelsea on Boxing Day, as Arsenal began their Premier League comeback with a 3-1 victory at the Emirates Stadium.
Meanwhile, captain Aubameyang scored the game-winning goal for 10-man Arsenal against Aston Villa at home during the 2019/20 season.
Not to mention Pepe’s magnificent free-kicks against Vitoria in the Europa League group stage, where he showed why he was worth £72 million.
Following his goal against Burnley, Odegaard may have risen to the top of the list when it comes to pulling rank over free-kicks at Arsenal.