Arsenal need so much more from captain Martin Odegaard

Arsenal learned within minutes that this was not the same Paris Saint-Germain team which rocked up to the Emirates in October and limped to a 2-0 defeat.

Luis Enrique's side encountered a loud Emirates on Tuesday night, with the ground hosting its first Champions League semi-final since 2009. A glorious north London day doubtlessly aided spirits, although such buoyancy faded within minutes of the game kicking off.

Ousmane Dembele's early goal tamed the Gooners' vivacity and only enlivened an already raucous away end. The move was similar to how PSG exploited Liverpool's press for their sole strike at Anfield, and the visitors then embarked on a 30-minute exhibition which served as a harsh reminder of the perils of late-stage Champions League football. They're no Real Madrid!

Arsenal were nowhere for half an hour, and in need of something, anything, to light a spark. Bukayo Saka's so often the man to galvanise this group of players, while captain Martin Odegaard made a habit of inspiring amid the club's rise. This season, though, the Nordic playmaker has struggled mightily, and the skipper was barely a footnote during the Gunners' 1-0 defeat.

Martin Odegaard drops woeful performance in first-leg defeat to PSG

For balance, it's worth noting that Odegaard actually played an important role in helping Arsenal get a foothold in proceedings. After watching PSG manipulate and play around their 4-4-2 block with ease, Arteta opted for a subtle change to his team's pressing structure, tasking Odegaard with holding back and covering Vitinha in the midfield pivot.

The shape without the ball became a 4-2-3-1, and Arsenal had more success at denying the switches of play from left-to-right which killed them early on.

Odegaard's brilliance without the ball does go unheralded, and his importance to the team in this regard means Arteta's unlikely to consider dropping his captain at Parc des Princes next week.

However, calls for his head are justified. Tuesday night's anonymity was not an isolated incident. Odegaard has struggled for form all season. He's suffered in the wake of his ankle ligament injury which he returned from in November, and has recently become a father which, as I'm sure many of you are aware of, is quite the strain.

Thus, there are mitigating factors at play when discussing Odegaard's form, but supporters often have little time for context. They assess what they see on the field, and the captain simply isn't producing with the ball at his feet. Against a supreme PSG midfield laden with technique and industry, Odegaard manifested the aura of a meek novice. Sure, he issued rallying cries throughout, but such pleas may well have frustrated the home crowd instead of offering a source of inspiration. It's your job to give them something to shout about!

This was a night when Arsenal needed their captain to puff out his chest and grab the contest by the scruff of its neck. Admittedly, PSG, given their unwillingness to cede possession after the Gunners rallied on either side of half-time, made it hard for Odegaard, but there were others who attempted to step up.

Saka wasn't outstanding, but he crafted a couple of moments for himself out of thin air. Mikel Merino was a pest throughout and troubled the visitors aerially, while Declan Rice and Myles Lewis-Skelly resisted pressure, drove upfield, and created Arsenal's two best chances of the night.

Amid a ghostly display, Odegaard completed just 23 passes (joint-seventh lowest among starters from both teams), lost the ball 13 times (sixth most), lost more than half of his duels, recorded just one key pass, and completed 20% of his dribbles.

Against a team that suffocate with their man-orientation, dynamism and courage are key. The sequences produced by Rice and teenager Lewis-Skelly compromised PSG's defensive structure, but they're seemingly actions the captain cannot perform. The visitors were able to contain him without much fuss.

Odegaard missed the chance to lead Arsenal's fightback on home soil, but Arteta will retain him in next week's XI and offer him another opportunity to dazzle under the bright lights. While the captain has been pivotal in the club's journey under the Spaniard, football supporters are a fickle bunch and many are starting to lose faith in the man they once cherished as an 'untouchable'.

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