Ruben Amorim singles out 'special' Arsenal star for praise ahead of Man Utd clash
Today at 12:32 PM
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has singled out Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard for praise ahead of Sunday’s FA Cup third round tie.
The historic rivals meet for the second time in the space of a month at the Emirates Stadium with neither side in a position to be able to afford a damaging defeat.
Arsenal are still licking their wounds following Tuesday’s shock 2-0 loss against Newcastle which leaves them with a mountain to climb if they are to reach the Carabao Cup final.
United, meanwhile, secured a morale boosting draw at Anfield last week and turned in a much improved performance but the cold hard reality remains they have failed to win any of their last six matches in all competitions.
On their last visit to the home of the 14-times FA Cup winners, United were well beaten by Arsenal although they were left frustrated by the nature of the two goals they conceded which both came from set pieces.
Arsenal’s reliance on corners and free-kicks has been well documented this season, but despite his lack of goals and assists, Amorim believes the Gunners’ skipper remains one of the best playmakers in the game.
Speaking at Friday’s pre-match press conference, Amorim said: ‘I think he is really special because his influence on all the games of Arsenal is impressive.
‘I played against them with Sporting and he didn’t play both games and you feel it in the team. When he’s playing, Arsenal are a different team.’
Odegaard has struggled to rediscover his best form after he recovered from an ankle ligament injury which kept him out of action for two months.
‘There are moments sometimes and probably sustaining [his form over the past couple of seasons], and that's again when you go to probability and when you go samples,’ said Mikel Arteta, discussing Odegaard’s recent output.
‘Sustaining an attacking midfielder to score 15 goals maybe two years ago, it doesn't happen. It hasn't happened in 15 years, so we were very aware of that on the other side of the coin.
‘So, he's trying very hard; he had some big chances, we missed some opportunities. Just help him and make sure that he's confident to take the shots when he needs to because he's so good at it.’
Odegaard’s relationship with Bukayo Saka has been a fruitful one in recent years for Arsenal, but the England international’s absence appears to have affected his captain.
‘It can be an element of that,’ Arteta addd when asked if his team had become too reliant on the relationship between his two star forwards.
‘[Martin] came back from an injury and in the first week or two, you have that extra energy and then you play every three days.
‘He was ill as well for over a week and then plays a part, so there's a lot of circumstances.
‘Obviously, it's inevitable to think when you have such a chemistry with a player and you're not together next to each other, you're going to notice that something is different.
‘Obviously, he's come from an injury and first maybe week or two you have that extra energy and then you play every three days.
‘He was ill as well for over a week, so that plays a part. A lot of circumstances but obviously, it's inevitable to think when you have such a chemistry with a player and you're not together next to each other, then you will notice something that is different.’
