Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard has admitted it’s taken longer than he expected to get a consistent run of form going after his return from injury.
Martin Odegaard’s start to the current campaign was cut short when he picked up an injury on international duty with Norway in September.
The midfielder spent a couple of months out of action, returning on November 6th, and initially he appeared to suffer no lingering effects of the injury.
In his first four starts back, Odegaard provided assists against Chelsea, Nottingham Forest, and Sporting CP, before scoring from the spot against West Ham United. But after four goal contributions in four games, he has just four more in the following 15.
Most recently, the player has been sidelined through illness, missing last weekend’s trip to Wolves. But he was back in action against Girona in midweek.
Reflecting on his season so far, Odegaard told The Standard that it’s taken longer than he thought it would to find consistent form.
“It’s been strange for me,” Odegaard said. “It’s the first time I’ve properly had an injury, I was out for a while and it’s something I’m not used to, so it was frustrating and weird for me.
“After the injury, I felt like I came back really strong then maybe it took me some more time than I expected to find my consistency.
“But now I feel like I’m back to where I should be and got rid of the illness and hopefully I will just get better and better now.
“I feel like I’ve been in enough situations and created a lot for others, but I haven’t been clinical enough with the finishing.”
Certainly the fact that Odegaard has just two goals (including one penalty) this season is unexpected. The midfielder scored double figures in each of the last two seasons, but he’s not particularly close to repeating that feat in 2024/25.
As Odegaard points out, the chances have been there. In the Premier League and Champions League, Odegaard has a non-penalty xG total of 3.4, but just one non-penalty goal. So he’s underperformed in open play by more than two goals.
Sunday’s game against Manchester City would be the perfect time to start turning that around.