Arteta backs Ødegaard as Arsenal captain after criticism
Mikel Arteta, Arsenal’s technical director, has defended Martin Ødegaard, who has been the subject of criticism regarding his captaincy. Arteta revealed that the players overwhelmingly voted in favor of Ødegaard keeping the armband this season.
Arteta’s decision comes after former Arsenal captain Tony Adams expressed doubts about Ødegaard’s ability to lead the team. Adams suggested that Arsenal would not win the league with Ødegaard as captain, and advocated for Declan Rice to take on the role.
However, Arteta explained that, after Jorginho’s departure, the team had the opportunity to reconsider its group of leaders, but they chose to keep Ødegaard, who has been captain since 2022.
“My opinion is clear and it’s not just my opinion, it’s the opinion of all the staff and especially the players,” Arteta stated. “I asked them to vote for the captain and yesterday I received the results. By far, by 100 miles, everyone chose the same person, which is Martin Ødegaard. That’s the clearest signal you can have of how they feel about who should be their captain.”
Mikel Arteta
Martin Ødegaard volverá a ser el capitán del Arsenal esta temporada después de la votación de los jugadores.
David Price/Arsenal FC vía Getty ImagesArteta also expressed his hope that the changes in the rules this season will be applied more consistently, after the team suffered the consequences of last year’s modifications.
The referees sought to control time-wasting, and both Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard were booked for kicking the ball away in the first six games of last season.
When asked about how to avoid a repeat of this, Arteta said: “It was very particular (last season). And it only lasted a few weeks and we were really punished during those few weeks.”
“But let’s hope it doesn’t happen. Again, I think they’ve been very clear. We’ve had very good meetings with the referees when they came here and also at the coaches’ meeting.”
“I think it’s very clear what to expect and I wish you all the best. I think we’re going to need the best from all of us to have the best Premier League in history, which I think is going to happen, and I hope we come out victorious.”
Arteta added: “Many data say that there have been many, many improvements in the last year or two. We need to reinforce that message, trust that process and support it.”
