Kevin De Bruyne, the renowned Manchester City midfielder, has heaped praise on Arsenal’s captain, Martin Odegaard, acknowledging his tremendous impact on the Premier League. De Bruyne’s recognition of Odegaard’s abilities and the potential threat he poses to De Bruyne’s own legacy in the league is indeed noteworthy.
Odegaard’s rise to prominence as one of the world’s top midfielders has been nothing short of spectacular. In Mikel Arteta’s system at Arsenal, he has seamlessly slotted into the right-sided number eight role, consistently finding the back of the net. What makes his recent achievements even more impressive is the fact that he primarily operates as a midfielder. Since the start of the 2022/23 season, only five players, all forwards, have scored more non-penalty goals in the Premier League than Odegaard.
This remarkable statistic highlights Odegaard’s ability to contribute significantly to his team’s goal tally from a deeper midfield position. Over the past 12 months, he has scored an impressive 16 non-penalty league goals, with his most recent strike coming in Arsenal’s 3-1 victory over Manchester United.
To put this into perspective, Manchester United’s creative maestro, Bruno Fernandes, has managed to score only six non-penalty goals in the same time frame, a substantial ten-goal difference in Odegaard’s favor. This ranking of the two players by Kevin De Bruyne has raised eyebrows, with Fernandes taking the top spot, Odegaard second, and James Maddison of Tottenham third.
De Bruyne’s assessment of Fernandes emphasized the Portuguese midfielder’s creativity and experience, which have been honed over a more extended period. While he lauded Odegaard as “very creative,” he noted that the Norwegian’s approach seemed more controlled, and he expressed the need to witness Maddison’s creative abilities in a bigger team context before making a fair judgment.
The reason for De Bruyne’s preference for Fernandes over Odegaard seems to be Fernandes’ consistency and longevity in the league compared to Odegaard, who, despite his exceptional performances, is younger and relatively newer to the Premier League stage.
After Odegaard’s pivotal equalizer just 35 seconds after Manchester United took the lead, former Tottenham Hotspur player Garth Crooks included him in his Premier League team of the week. Crooks commended Odegaard for being a “lifesaver” for Arsenal, highlighting the crucial nature of his goal in that game. He praised Odegaard’s technique and precision, particularly in a challenging situation where the angle and execution had to be perfect to beat Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana.
