Odegaard left 'moving gingerly' after second nasty tackle in a week

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Martin Odegaard has been on the receiving end of two heavy challenges in the space of a week, and the Arsenal captain's treatment on international duty has become a talking point ahead of the club's return to action.

The first came in the closing stages of Portugal's 2-1 Nations League win over Norway in Oslo, when Bernardo Silva caught the Arsenal skipper's legs. Odegaard, who rarely loses his temper, reacted angrily, and the fallout was extensive. Bernardo defended himself afterwards by insisting the tackle was simply part of football.

There were subsequent doubts over the 27-year-old's fitness. According to football.london's Ryan Taylor, Odegaard hobbled back onto the Norway team bus and was still moving gingerly on arrival in Cardiff. He was passed fit to face Wales.

A second challenge in Cardiff

On Thursday night, Jordan James went through the Arsenal midfielder without making any attempt to play the ball and was booked for it. This time Odegaard did not react with anger — his response was one of disbelief.

He was not hurt on this occasion, though the challenge carried obvious risk. Former Liverpool defender Steve Nicol suggested in the media that Odegaard's technical style invites such treatment, a view Taylor firmly rejects in his column.

An argument Arteta has made before

This is not new territory for Mikel Arteta. Back in November 2022, with Bukayo Saka being persistently targeted by opponents, the Spaniard addressed the issue directly ahead of a trip to Wolves.

"The referees have the duties to deal with that," Arteta said. "The better the players become, the bigger target they become, because people try to find ways to stop him. That is why football has very clear rules, what you can do and what you cannot do, and that is the referee's job."

Arteta also revealed at the time that he had asked his players to be more considerate with the passes they fed into Saka's path, pointing out that selling the winger short only invited heavier tackles.

Taylor's argument is that the same public intervention may now be required for the captain, with players already carrying increased injury risk because of a congested calendar.

Form that makes him a target

The context is that Odegaard has been in outstanding form this season following a historic World Cup campaign with Norway in North America. He already has four goals across all competitions, and only months after genuine questions hung over his Emirates future, he is central to Arsenal's bid to retain the Premier League title.

That status, as Arteta noted four years ago, tends to come with a price. Whether the officials start applying stricter protection — and whether Arteta chooses to raise it publicly again — will become clearer when the Norwegian reports back to London Colney.