06 February 2024 , 11:53
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Martin Odegaard was guilty of “strange” behaviour after the Liverpool win and Declan Rice would make a better Arsenal captain, according to Emmanuel Petit.
The Gunners picked up a vital 3-1 win over Liverpool on Sunday, with the three points keeping them in the Premier League title race. Everyone was in agreement about the importance of the victory and the impressive performance from Mikel Arteta ’s side – but Odegaard’s actions afterwards have split opinion.
The Arsenal captain took a camera off the club photograph and snapped some pictures of him celebrating on the pitch. To some it was a harmless incident which showed the positive mood in the camp, but for Jamie Carragher it was over the top and unnecessary.
He said on Sky Sports: “Just get down the tunnel! You’ve won a big game, you’ve got the three points, you’re back in the title race, just get down the tunnel. I’m being serious, honestly.” Odegaard has since defended himself, but former Arsenal midfielder Petit wasn’t a fan either.
“I agree with what Jamie Carragher said after the game,” he told Compare.bet. “I really like Martin Odegaard but his behaviour after the game was a bit strange. You’ve just won a game, it’s just three points. Calm down. I understand why they were so happy after a big win and a great performance but you have to be careful. There’s still 15 games to go and they were acting like they won the league.”
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Petit saw a clear contrast between Odegaard and Rice, who was key to Arsenal’s win and showed his leadership potential. “Arsenal won the game because of the midfield,” he added. “It was the key to the performance and they dominated the midfield physically, technically and tactically.
“Jorginho and Rice were both absolutely brilliant. What is there left to say about Declan Rice? He should be Arsenal captain for me. He has such a brilliant character and he is a leader. He has something different to the rest of the players and is so influential in big games.”
Martin Odegaard wears the armband instead of Declan Rice (Jacques Feeney/Getty Images) HAVE YOUR SAY! Do you think Declan Rice would make a better captain for Arsenal than Martin Odegaard? Comment below.
Rice was captain at West Ham before he moved to Arsenal in a £105million transfer in the summer. Odegaard has worn the armband since the start of the 2022/23 season, appointed by Arteta following the Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang fallout, and the 25-year-old playmaker also captains Norway.
He has rejected the criticism of his celebrations on Sunday. “I think everyone who loves football and understands football, they know how much it means to win this game,” he said. “And if you’re not allowed to celebrate when you win, when are you allowed to celebrate? We’re happy and we’ll stay humble. After being at the top for so long last season, we always prefer to be at the top, of course.
“But we’re still in a good position, we showed today the quality we have in the team, in a big game, a lot to play for. It would have been a tough one for us to lose today - that would have left us eight points behind, but we really showed up and it was a great performance overall.”