Martin Odegaard gives verdict on Gabriel Jesus return amid Arsenal dressing room demand
Arsenal signed Gabriel Jesus from Manchester City last summer and the striker’s arrival helped spark an unlikely challenge for the Premier League title this season
Martin Odegaard welcomed Gabriel Jesus’ return to match fitness after the Brazilian started his first game since suffering a knee injury at the World Cup in December.
Jesus came on as a late substitute against Fulham last weekend but played 45 minutes in Thursday’s Europa League defeat by Sporting Lisbon. And Odegaard said of his team-mate’s return: “It’s another great addition to the squad. He gives so much in training every day, he comes in and trains like a game.
“He gives everything in all situations, so it’s great to have him back. Of course he helps in the lead, he was at Manchester City and won a few things there, so he can also help with his experience and energy.
“City’s players just bring a different way of thinking, they have the experience and people listen to them when they talk. They are calm under pressure and add a lot of things. The whole team helps each other, that’s the main thing.”
Odegaard and his mates were unhappy after falling out of the Europa League and he knows how important it is to win against Crystal Palace on Sunday lest they suffer two defeats in the international break.
He added: “It’s very, very important. The next game is coming up fast so we can’t feel sorry for ourselves, we need to recover and make sure we win.”
Odegaard admitted the Europa League defeat by Sporting can’t be answered with a similar hangover after being eliminated from the FA Cup. The Gunners were sidelined in the round of 16 when Gabriel Martinelli saw his penalty saved in a penalty shoot-out loss to their Portuguese opponents.
Granit Xhaka’s first goal since October put the hosts ahead before Pedro Goncalves equalized with an impressive shot from 49 metres. Manuel Ugarte was sent deep into extra time for Sporting but they survived a couple of late scares to win the penalty shootout and advance to the quarters.
Attention for Arsenal returns to their Premier League title bid as they look to build an eight-point lead at the top of the table when they take on Crystal Palace on Sunday.
Mikel Arteta’s side have lost just six games in 90 minutes in all competitions this season, but two of those defeats came from the FA Cup fourth round defeat at Manchester City in January. With just one point from three subsequent league games, many thought Arsenal’s title win had faltered, but they have since won their last five games.
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However, with the end of the season, Odegaard knows that a similar slip can’t follow the setback after losing to Sporting. “We already talked about it in the dressing room,” he said when asked how important it was not to repeat this run.
“We have to look ahead now. We have to look to Sunday. It’s already started in the dressing room now and we’re getting ready. We just have to rethink one more thing. I think everyone’s disappointed but we have to go forward and be just ready for sunday.
“I think every time we’ve lost this season we’ve learned something from that. Every time we’ve come back and changed the situation again. We’ll do that again and the next game will come quickly, so it is it’s a good opportunity.” fight back.”