Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta hailed the “decisive” contribution of Martin Ødegaard after the captain fired his side to a 1-0 win in their Champions League opener at Napoli.
The Gunners, who are aiming to go one better than last season’s final defeat this time around, looked like they would be frustrated by missed chances in Naples.
But Ødegaard continued his brilliant start to the campaign by coming up with the goods 15 minutes from time to give his side a winning start in the league phase, firing in off the post from the edge of the area.
It was his fourth goal in five games this season, including the Community Shield, as he looks to take his game to the next level. “Certainly Martin is contributing with goals that are impacting results which is what we want from our attacking players, being decisive and certainly he was again today,” Arteta told TNT Sports.
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Ødegaard lifted the Premier League title in May, but did so on the back of an injury-hit season in which he only managed one goal in 36 games across all competitions.
On Wednesday, he looked like the World Cup version of himself — as Norway captain he provided four assists in a run to the quarterfinals in July.
“I didn’t even see it go in,” Ødegaard said of Wednesday’s winner at Napoli, adding that with the hosts defending deep “at some point it made sense to shoot from outside the box.”
Arsenal needed it on a night where they had 26 attempts on goal — a club record for an away game in the Champions League.
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The barrage included a bad miss by Bukayo Saka in the first half and Mikel Merino’s close range header that was aimed too close to Napoli’s starting goalkeeper Alex Meret, who was replaced at halftime because of a thigh injury.
“We played brilliant football and should have scored many more goals, but we got there in the end,” Ødegaard said.
Information from PA and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
