Odegaard says ‘it’s a dream’ to play with one Arsenal player but Arteta rarely uses him

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Arsenal star Martin Odegaard took part in a Q&A session yesterday and the Norwegian claimed that it’s a ‘dream’ to play with Gabriel Martinelli.

The young Brazilian has been at the club for over two years now. He burst onto the scene in English football in fantastic style under Unai Emery and he became an instant fan favourite at the Emirates.

Odegaard, who only joined the club at the start of this year, has played just nine times together with Martinelli. However, he sees him on the training pitch every day and he has revealed that he loves playing with the youngster from Brazil.

Here’s what he said yesterday…

Odegaard: It’s a dream to play with players like Martinelli

One of the questions in the Norwegian’s Q&A session yesterday asked him to pick his favourite Brazilian at Arsenal. He had the choice between Gabriel Magalhaes and Martinelli, and he went with the latter.

Odegaard said: “That’s a difficult one, but if I had to say one, I’d say Gabi Martinelli.

“It’s always nice to play with him, he’s (always) moving a lot. So it’s a dream to play with those kind of players. They always run and it’s easy to give them the ball.”

Martinelli should play more

Martinelli’s movement and Odegaard’s creativity make them the perfect combination in attack, but the young Brazilian has really struggled for regular game time under Arteta.

Odegaard and Martinelli have shared the pitch for just 157 minutes since the Norwegian joined the club. The young Brazilian has started just two games in the Premier League as well this season, which is simply not enough.

However, the competition for places at Arsenal is really high at the moment. Martinelli has the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette, Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka to compete with, which is not easy.

Arsenal not being in Europe is another reason why fans have not been able to see a lot of Martinelli. Gunners supporters will be hoping that will change next season as the ex-Ituano sensation really does deserve to play a lot more than he has this term.