Former Arsenal star Paul Merson has heaped praise on Martin Odegaard, claiming he is much better than James Maddison.
The 24-year-old has been an exceptional player for Arsenal since joining the club for £30 million and he has recently signed a contract with them until the summer of 2028. Merson believes that Odegaard is a much better player compared to Tottenham Hotspur midfielder James Maddison.
Maddison signed for Tottenham earlier this summer, and the 26-year-old has been an impressive performer for Tottenham. The former Leicester City midfielder has managed to hit the ground running at his new club, and he has been Tottenham’s main source of creativity so far.
Both players have been important options for their respective clubs. But the former Arsenal forward Paul Merson believes that the Gunners have better players than Tottenham all across the pitch. He also added that Maddison is a good player but he would not have the England international ahead of Odegaard any day of the week.
Speaking on Sky Sports Soccer Saturday, he said, “Arsenal have got better players than Tottenham, no question, all over the pitch. You talk about Maddison, good player but you would not take him over Odegaard any day of the week.”
Odegard has not only established himself as a key performer for Arsenal, he has also taken over the leadership role at the North London club. The Norwegian international is now the captain of Arsenal and he helped them challenge for the league title last season.
Odegaard scored 15 goals across all competitions and picked up eight assists along the way last season. He has been quite impressive so far this season and it remains to be seen whether he can help the Gunners win the league title this season.
Meanwhile, Arsenal will take on Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League later today, and it remains to be seen whether the Gunners can emerge victorious in the end. Both Arsenal and Tottenham are currently level on points in the Premier League, but Tottenham are ahead of them on goal difference.
It will be interesting to see which of the two midfielders can step up and get the job done for their side today. Both Odegaard and Maddison will be crucial to their teams’ hopes of winning the north London derby.