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Mikel Arteta praises huge performance from Martin Odegaard

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has praised captain Martin Odegaard following his huge performance against Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League.

The Norwegian has been in fantastic form since the international break and he was undoubtedly the man of the match in the victory over the Seagulls on Sunday.

Odegaard had 74 touches with a pass accuracy of 93 per cent. He made four key passes and won four dribbles and was unlucky to end up without a goal or an assist.

Speaking after the game, Arteta said that Odegaard celebrated his birthday in a great way and it was a huge performance, he told Arsenal.com: “He wanted to celebrate his beautiful birthday today in a great way – and he’s done it, with a win, with a huge performance.”

“The way they play, the way they press you, they go man-to-man and you have to be so good, so accurate, so precise, so intelligent to do what we have done today. We’ve done it.”

Odegaard getting back to his best at Arsenal

The 25-year-old was inconsistent with his performances before the last international break. He was struggling with a hip issue which hampered him from influencing games.

Since his comeback, the club captain has been playing like his old self. The confidence on the ball has been visible to see and he was brilliant with his movement against Brighton.

Odegaard made several clever passes to outwit the Brighton defence, but the Gunners lacked the cutting edge with their finishing. The Norwegian was also denied a goal with a brilliant save.

The £30 million signing now needs to replicate the showing against Liverpool on the road next weekend. A victory at Anfield would be a huge statement from Arsenal in their title pursuit.

Stats from Sofascore.com

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