Martin Ødegaard: El Capitanø Incognito

[Sniper Mik]

Something beyond just fatherhood must be going on. This level of regression is stunning. He looked better in his first couple of matches back after the long layoff. Everything from his execution to his decision making has gone backwards and it doesn't make sense. The guy was the best midfielder in the league last season and now looks like Havertz Jr.

Without Saka he's nerfed beyond any use. Timber also doesn't quite overlap like Ben White does. He needs better forwards to work with, but he really doesn't have any more levels to go up individually.

 

[EmeryCouldnt]

Without Saka he's nerfed beyond any use. Timber also doesn't quite overlap like Ben White does. He needs better forwards to work with, but he really doesn't have any more levels to go up individually.

He absolutely is not playing at his best individually. He’s been awful. Lost his shooting boots.

 

[SA Gunner]

Yeah, he has the vision and creates the "chance" but the weight is almost always a bit wrong, so it's not really a good chance. Drop him deeper and you magnify the costly defensive mistakes though.

He can get out of tight situations though, that aspect of his game remains top and he knows where players are.

We wont get done at our goal keeper and defensive line, the players are just too well organised to get pressed into trouble there now.

The problem is moving the ball successfully from our midfield into the attacking areas. That aspect of our game is seriously below par right now, and will cost us this season if we dont figure it out fast. And Ødegaard is part of that problem for me.

 

[Deleted member 98559]

Look at I believe that's Rice throwing his head back in disgust. Damning.

Nah, Rice moved too late so he has no say in this. Think the only player who can ask questions is Martinelli on the left but nobody cares about his opinion anymore. Also looks like the pass on the right was blocked so not that many options.

Think Nwaneri would burst through their midfield like it's nothing, Ode doesn't have that in his skillset

 

[Batman]

Without Saka he's nerfed beyond any use. Timber also doesn't quite overlap like Ben White does. He needs better forwards to work with, but he really doesn't have any more levels to go up individually.

He's been poor with Saka on the pitch though. He's been missing 1v1s, giving the ball away cheaply and making baffling decisions before Saka's injury. I will absolutely agree that some of the chances he's created have been wasted by players who aren't clinical but much like Martinelli, most of Ødegaard's problems presently go well beyond who is around him.

We also cannot have the captain and leader of the team requiring ideal conditions to impact the game. That's a recipe for disaster. Realistically, Saka should probably be the captain because he tends to turn up no matter what unless he's injured. Last year, I watched Ødegaard drag this team to results at times. Now is when he is needed most and he's really failed to stand up and be counted. That's not good from the leader of the team and really disappointing given his quality and his last couple of seasons.

 

[Sniper Mik]

He absolutely is not playing at his best individually. He’s been awful. Lost his shooting boots.

His shooting and final ball has always been inconsistent.

 

[EmeryCouldnt]

His shooting and final ball has always been inconsistent.

Sure, but not like this. 15 goals and 7 assists 22-23, 8 goals 10 assists 23-24, 1 and 2 so far this season. Clearly levels below what he was the past two seasons.

 

[Batman]

Nah, Rice moved too late so he has no say in this. Think the only player who can ask questions is Martinelli on the left but nobody cares about his opinion anymore. Also looks like the pass on the right was blocked so not that many options.

Think Nwaneri would burst through their midfield like it's nothing, Ode doesn't have that in his skillset

It's not so much about whether Rice has a say or not. It's about Ødegaard's teammates recognizing that he's killed a counter for no reason. There is no justifying doing a pirouette in the middle of the pitch for no reason.

Jesus was in a bigger funk than Nelli and what kick started him getting back in a bit of form was Ødegaard playing the exact kind of pass on the counter that he refused to play today. It was a microcosm of why this team struggles to score easy goals when even vastly inferior teams like the Spuds score them in bunches and why Liverpool are going to walk the league this season. We make things harder on ourselves for absolutely no reason and the manager and his captain are clearly the driving force behind that.

 

[Sniper Mik]

He's been poor with Saka on the pitch though. He's been missing 1v1s, giving the ball away cheaply and making baffling decisions before Saka's injury. I will absolutely agree that some of the chances he's created have been wasted by players who aren't clinical but much like Martinelli, most of Ødegaard's problems presently go well beyond who is around him.

We also cannot have the captain and leader of the team requiring ideal conditions to impact the game. That's a recipe for disaster. Realistically, Saka should probably be the captain because he tends to turn up no matter what unless he's injured. Last year, I watched Ødegaard drag this team to results at times. Now is when he is needed most and he's really failed to stand up and be counted. That's not good from the leader of the team and really disappointing given his quality and his last couple of seasons.

Yeah, who knows maybe the answer is something as simple as a lack of fitness. Two seasons of constant running around as the first presser surely can't be a sustainable thing.

 

[blaze_of_glory]

If we had competent finishers he'd have three asissts. But he's gotta score that pk.

 

[Riou]

Özil 4 FA cups.
Ramsey 3 FA cups.
Cazorla 2 FA cups.
Rosicky 1 FA cup.

Ødegaard...1,000,000 hair flicks.

The decline of our playmaking position man ..

 

[blaze_of_glory]

Özil 4 FA cups.
Ramsey 3 FA cups.
Cazorla 2 FA cups.
Rosicky 1 FA cup.

Ødegaard...1,000,000 hair flicks.

The decline of our playmaking position man ..

A-M will tell you Özil did nothing in those cup runs. That's what they told me at the time

 

[Riou]

A-M will tell you Özil did nothing in those cup runs. That's what they told me at the time

Why the fu3k would you ever pay attention to anything on AM?

Don't think I have ever read or posted anything worthwhile at all on here, tbh.

 

[Batman]

Yeah, who knows maybe the answer is something as simple as a lack of fitness. Two seasons of constant running around as the first presser surely can't be a sustainable thing.

It could be part of it. I do worry about him a bit because to me it's pretty obvious that he's been on the inhalers the last couple of years. Nobody just develops an engine in their early to mid 20's like he's pulled out of thin air without some outside help and after the first couple of matches back from injury, that engine seems to have really sputtered. It's certainly not just an Ødegaard problem, it's just that because of his importance and particularly in Saka's absence, his struggles have an enormous ripple effect.

 

[MikelHadADream]

His fall off has been unacceptable for me. He was worse than Kai today (imo) and has been absolute dogshit for months.

This isn’t a captain of a serious team.

 

[pure profit FC]

Guy is not a leader, he has shocking this season injury or not.

 

[Deleted member 98559]

Without Saka he's nerfed beyond any use. Timber also doesn't quite overlap like Ben White does. He needs better forwards to work with, but he really doesn't have any more levels to go up individually.

Ødegaard is a weak individual. For some time I thought he was the one who got us going but it looks like it was Saka and Ode glued himself to Saka. The two of them combine so well, and if we would find an elite CF who can move and score I think Ødegaard would be at his best then and probably considered the best AM in the game. On his own Ødegaard does absolutely nothing

 

[Deleted member 98559]

His fall off has been unacceptable for me. He was worse than Kai today (imo) and has been absolute dogshit for months.

That's an emotional response, he set up 2 clear cut chances for Rice and Havertz, and that alone makes him an asset in the game. Not sure how many big chances other midfielders create per game but I somehow doubt it's more than 2, and if it's 2 it's considered a good game so not sure what you guys want

 

[Diesel]

That's an emotional response, he set up 2 clear cut chances for Rice and Havertz, and that alone makes him an asset in the game. Not sure how many big chances other midfielders create per game but I somehow doubt it's more than 2, and if it's 2 it's considered a good game so not sure what you guys want

****in abysmal player this season. We still gotta play him though. Got no one else.