3 reasons Martin Odegaard should be rotated in upcoming games

Martin Odegaard is Arsenal’s captain and one of the team’s superstars. 

Odegaard played a leading role for the Gunners last season, both with and without the ball, as he scored the second-most non-penalty goals by a midfielder in Premier League history. So, asking if he should be dropped may seem like an odd question. In fact, it may seem insane so I would like to point out now that I don’t mean he should be dropped completely.

Instead, I will be looking through whether Odegaard should be rotated more. He has started in every Premier League and Champions League game this season and has only been subbed off three times in ten games.

In that time, he has scored four goals and assisted once. Those are decent statistics, but I think his performances haven’t been up to scratch this season – excluding the home win over PSV and comfortable victory at Bournemouth.

Therefore, I think that Mikel Arteta should consider giving others a chance at the expense of the captain.

3 reasons Martin Odegaard should be rotated in upcoming games

Let’s get into three reasons why Martin Odegaard should be rotated more for the next few games.

1. To elevate him

A problem I have with Martin Odegaard is that I feel he tends to underperform, to his standards, in big games. Against Manchester City and Tottenham, he was wayward with his passes and couldn’t find his teammates like he usually does.

Benching a player, or, at least, showing them that they are not guaranteed a position in the starting lineup, should light a fire under them and really push them to the next level. Give a player something to prove and they will prove themselves.

The other thing that has been annoying me about Odegaard this season is his shooting and, more specifically, his shot selection. Through eight Premier League games, the skipper’s xG per shot is currently the joint-lowest of his career at 0.05.

He is taking shots from well outside the box and more importantly, when other players are in much better positions. Gabriel Martinelli, in particular, was very unhappy in the game against Man City when Odegaard decided to shoot at one point.

It’s evident that the Norwegian is choosing to shoot more, and it may be a joint decision with Arteta but I am not a fan. I much prefer Odegaard when he’s linking play and playing intricate through balls. That’s the Odegaard I want to see again!

Getting subbed off a bit more or even not starting a game or two might give him the refresher that he needs.

Continued on the next slide…