Cabin BLV: Arsenal is not worried about Odegaard's injury

09/10/2025 07:27:00 PlaymakerHub

Martin Odegaard’s injury in the West Ham win caused concern among Arsenal supporters. Nevertheless, this season might mark a time when Mikel Arteta depends less on the Norwegian midfielder’s abilities.

1. Last season, Arsenal went through a period of poor form when Odegaard was injured, causing them to lose their advantage over Liverpool in the Premier League title race. This problem was significantly addressed this summer when Arteta strengthened the midfield by adding quality players like Martin Zubimendi and Christian Norgaard, not to mention another newcomer, Eberechi Eze, who is willing to drop back into midfield if required, although the Crystal Palace recruit prefers to play nearer to the opponent’s penalty area.

What impact will this have on Arsenal this season? While Man City still struggles with Rodri only recently recovering from a ligament injury (and then suffering another), Arsenal is very proactive if Odegaard is absent due to injury. Besides the two new midfielders mentioned above, they still have Declan Rice and Mikel Merino. To be frank, Arteta’s team possesses one of the most elite and impressively deep squads in the Premier League, not only in midfield. This will enable Arsenal to comfortably rotate their squad across different competitions and reduce the impact of losing a key player to injury. Combined with their current good form, they are the leading candidates for the Premier League title even though only seven rounds have been played. Naturally, Arsenal will need to overcome many challenges to prove they won’t repeat the mistakes of previous seasons, but having many alternatives to Odegaard will be an important factor helping Arteta’s side eliminate concerns about collapsing as the season enters its crucial phase. Big clubs like Arsenal have to play densely packed schedules in multiple competitions, so a player like Odegaard getting injured is hard to avoid.

Arsenal has many ways to cope when Odegaard is sidelined due to injury

2. Of course, this does not mean Odegaard’s role at Arsenal is underestimated. Every time the midfielder steps onto the pitch, he still demonstrates the aura of a conductor, a game orchestrator, which is exactly what Arteta needs to guide the team toward the Premier League title. Odegaard’s injury in the win over West Ham was unfortunate and for the midfielder himself, this was the third consecutive Premier League match he started but had to leave before halftime.

However, in a positive sense, Odegaard’s significant injury history has pushed Arsenal to strengthen their midfield depth. The absence of Arsenal’s number 8, in some ways, provides Arteta’s team with an opportunity to refresh their playing style, avoiding opponents easily reading the midfield’s playmaking intentions. Playing without relying on a conductor like Odegaard makes Arsenal more unpredictable, and opponents cannot anticipate how Arteta’s team will set up their tactics. Therefore, Arsenal’s midfield can fully compete on equal terms with those of other Premier League giants like Liverpool, Man City, or Chelsea.

Overall, this season offers Arteta a chance to show everyone that his team does not depend on any single individual. In Odegaard’s case, besides the midfield options mentioned earlier, Arsenal can also rely on young talents like Ethan Nwaneri or Max Dowman, a 15-year-old player who impressed during pre-season preparations. These are exactly what Arteta’s team needs to be ready to aim for the title while Liverpool under Arne Slot shows signs of decline with three consecutive losses, and Man City has only just begun to recover after a poor start to the season.

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