Arsenal seem to have rediscovered their groove over the couple of weeks.

The Gunners hammered Nottingham Forest 3-0 in their return to Premier League action at the weekend, while they thrashed Sporting CP 5-1 in the Champions League.

It’s no coincidence that Arsenal’s return to form has coincided with Martin Odegaard’s return to the starting XI.

The Arsenal captain is back in action after a lengthy injury, and he’s been red hot upon his return.

Odegaard has received plenty of praise for his performances over the past week, and writing in his column on SportsKeeda, Paul Merson has hailed the midfielder.

Indeed, Merson says that Odegaard is a different class player who makes Bukayo Saka look so much better.

Martin Odegaard helps Bukayo Saka improve

Merson spoke about how Odegaard improves Arsenal as a team and improves Saka as a player.

The pundit says that Saka goes to another level whenever he shares a pitch with Odegaard.

Saka has been touted as a future Arsenal captain, but it’s the current Arsenal skipper who is being praised here.

“Martin Odegaard is different class, what a player. He makes Bukayo Saka 10 times better! Don’t get me wrong, Saka is a good player but Odegaard just elevates him to another level,” Merson wrote.

Bukayo Saka’s stats alongside Martin Odegaard

Merson says that Odegaard helps Saka reach another level, and he’s not wrong.

Indeed, Saka’s numbers are indeed better when he’s playing alongside Odegaard.

	Bukayo Saka Arsenal stats when Martin Odegaard doesn’t play	Bukayo Saka career stats alongside Martin Odegaard
Games	97	146
Goals	14	50
Assists	25	34
Goal contributions per game	0.4	0.57

As you can see, Saka’s numbers are better when he’s on the same pitch as his captain, and that’s because of the influence Odegaard has on the Arsenal attack.

Odegaard isn’t necessarily constantly feeding Saka, but he is creating space, dictating play, and making things happen in the final third.

Arsenal average 2.1 points per game when Saka and Odegaard both play, and that’s a serious improvement on the 1.83 points per game Arsenal are averaging this season.

If Arsenal are to contend for the Premier League title this season, then their best bet is to get Saka and Odegaard on the same pitch together as often as possible.

These two are vital to any potential success Arsenal will taste this season.

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