Danny Murphy has lavished praise on Martin Odegaard after getting stick for effectively ruling Arsenal out of the Premier League title race.
The Gunners produced a fantastic controlled performance to beat Brighton 3-0 on Saturday night and go top of the league. Bukayo Saka’s penalty, Kai Havertz’s tap-in and Leandro Trossard’s dinked finish on the counter-attack secured a vital three points for Arsenal ahead of Liverpool’s trip to Old Trafford on Sunday.
Brighton had not lost at home in the league since August, but were thoroughly outclassed by Mikel Arteta’s side, who have now kept five successive clean sheets on the road. They look every bit the title contenders as they chase a Premier League trophy in 20 years.
Their win came after Murphy said Arsenal wouldn’t get over the line due to their tricky fixtures - one of which they've now won. His comments irritated Arsenal fans, who are in awe of their team’s resilience and quality, so they will have been amused to see Murphy’s comments about Odegaard’s performance at Brighton.
“He set the tone for a hugely impressive win and I can’t pay him a higher compliment than saying his captaincy reminds me of the way David Beckham led the England team I was part of,” Murphy wrote for the Daily Mail. The former Liverpool midfielder thinks Odegaard has a similar lower key leadership style which commands respect through professionalism and his high level.
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Of his display on Saturday, he added: “His movement was non-stop but in addition to that the technical levels were so high with the ball, there was always this link between the Arsenal midfield and attack. Quite simply, Odegaard is at the top of his game at the moment. He is incredibly disciplined and available every week, another reason I think why Arteta anointed him as the official leader.”
To be fair to Murphy, he wasn’t just complimentary about Odegaard and suggested Arsenal would be his second choice to win the title, after his former club Liverpool. “An Arsenal title would be good for football,” he wrote. “For the club to take a young, untested manager like Arteta and trust him with money and time to build a project would be a great story. Then again, you could say the same about Jurgen Klopp leaving Anfield as king.”
Martin Odegaard impressed Danny Murphy vs Brighton (Stuart MacFarlane/Getty Images)His comments come after the provocative ones on talkSPORT earlier in the week. "This is what we want from a Premier League title race," he said. "Unless you’re a Man City fan you probably want someone else to win it.
"I wanted Arsenal to win it last year, for example. It’s not that I don’t admire Man City, of course I do, it’s a phenomenal team with a great manager. But we need that competition in the Premier League and this is turning into a real ding dong. I don’t think Arsenal will get over the line, just because of the fixtures. They’ve got to go to Tottenham, Old Trafford and Brighton."
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