‘I have to stop him’: Arteta says Arsenal 23-year-old does not stop training, he always wants to do more

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has revealed what Martin Odegaard is really like in training every day at London Colney.

The Gunners boss handed the captain’s armband to the Norwegian on Saturday after Alexandre Lacazette missed the game at Southampton following a positive COVID test.

Odegaard, like most of his teammates, couldn’t get the job done against the Saints, but it has to be said that he has been absolutely incredible for Arsenal this season.

Arteta spoke to Norwegian media outlet TV2 about the 23-year-old and he revealed that Odegaard wants to train multiple times in a single day and needs to be stopped sometimes.

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Mikel Arteta: Arsenal star Martin Odegaard always wants to do more in training

The Spaniard said about Odegaard: “He is first and foremost a special person. He is very well raised. You can see it in his behaviour, how he communicates with people and how respectful he is with everyone.

“Martin has a special passion for football. He wants to talk about football, he wants to get better and he wants to understand why things happen. 

“He is extremely open. He will do anything to reach the level he can reach. He has developed so much this season.

“I have to stop him. Martin will train in the afternoon and in the evening in addition to everything else. You have to stop him. He just wants more and more.”

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Arsenal and Arteta received a ton of criticism from a few pundits and the media when they decided to sign Odegaard on a permanent deal ahead of someone like James Maddison, who was also heavily linked.

Those three consecutive defeats at the start of the season increased the criticism even more, but Odegaard has since been absolutely fantastic for the Gunners. All the good things Arsenal do in attack go through him and he is now arguably their most important player.

Odegaard is still only 23, which is just incredible for Arteta’s side. He will only get better in the coming years and if what happened on Saturday is anything to go, he may well be the next Arsenal captain.

Arsenal take on Chelsea in the Premier League next and if Odegaard doesn’t have a good game, it’s likely that they’ll come away from the game with nothing.

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