Odegaard addresses Arsenal set-piece criticism | OneFootball

Martin Odegaard has laughed off criticism of Arsenal’s impressive set-piece record, reiterating Mikel Arteta’s recent defence.

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Arsenal’s recent set-piece record has been impressive, and that’s certainly been emphasised in recent matches.

Gabriel Magalhaes scored headers from corners in consecutive games against Sporting CP and West Ham United, before dropping out of the team through injury. Yet Arsenal went on to score three corner goals in two games against Manchester United and Fulham in his absence.

Somehow, that’s led to criticism of Arsenal, as if scoring from set-pieces is somehow shameful. Team captain Martin Odegaard admits it’s been amusing to see that reaction unfold.

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“It’s funny to watch,” Odegaard admitted. “Suddenly people start to criticise you for being good at something – that’s a bit funny.

“I think Mikel said that we want to be the best at everything we do and set pieces are an important part of football.

“They’re something we really want to dominate at. We’re doing well at the moment so we just have to keep it up and keep scoring.”

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The quotes Odegaard is referring to came from Arteta’s pre-Fulham press conference, where the manager insisted that dominating attacking set-pieces is just one element of the team Arsenal want to be.

“We want to be the kings of everything – at set pieces, the best in the world, at high press, the best in the world, attacking open spaces, the best in the world,” Arteta said. “We want the best atmosphere in the stadium, and be the best at everything.

“Before it was about we didn’t score enough, we were so defensive in our mentality, we were not physical enough and could not challenge the top teams and going 22, 17, 20 years without winning away from home in big matches.

“We want to be the best at everything, we want to have the best academy, the best individual development for players, recruit the best players and have the best coaches. That’s the aim and now we have to go and do something else.”

The Gunners are certainly shining on set-pieces at the moment, which has made it easier to cover for the elements of their game that haven’t been quite so consistent. If and when it all comes together, they’ll be a difficult team to stop.