Thread by @nonewthing

4 Saka run in-behind opportunities against Villa

—Ode pass forces him to change body shape, sends him outside rather than inside
—Ode pass is too early again, destroys any opportunity of attacking inside, Saka's run/shape/destination changes
—Pass not played
—Pass near perfect

For me, this illustrates how much Odegaard quietly limits Saka's potential without anyone suspecting a thing.

Saka is a magician type. His brain is too quick, too adaptable for opponents. Whatever a situation optimally requires (a run, a pass, a cross, a dribble) Saka is there.

There are infinite possibilities of actions for Saka. This is his genius. One of these infinite possibilities are his out-to-in runs in behind the opposition, despite him not being the fastest winger in the world.

When Saka is in this mode, he requires quality passing to support

his run. The evidence I have seen of Martin Odegaard's passes to Saka is

—Either he doesn't play it at all (defusing and refusing Saka's genius)
—Or he sends him wide (treating Saka as a flank breaker/dribbler rather than an inside forward going to goal; he forces his own

perception/interpretation of Saka's qualities onto the moment, rather than support the situation)

I can say that these are costing Arsenal and Saka some 5 goals per season.

Sometimes, this is not entirely Odegaard's fault. His ballstriking prowess especially at RCM can be

—Unimaginative (constantly using the left which forces wide angles for a runner from the side rather than the right to send the ball rolling inside)

—Lacking in power during transitions, slowing down attacks/situations (because of how he sidefoots it like he's playing an

intricate slipped ball in between legs in no space rather than finding a runner into large amounts of space)

Also, as you can see in the 2nd clip, Odegaard lacks sufficient carrying power to keep up the pace, attract a player to himself and hold until his team have an advantage.

When Odegaard is on the left or has left sided angles, the inconsistency and inefficiency of his passes/releases greatly reduces.

Have you never wondered why you never see such passes releasing Saka into space on the right hand side?

This is because

—It is on his strong foot and strong side, which means he can be more dynamic in the carry and can turn and still face play vertically (KDB on the right)
—The way he has to strike it is different (engages more power into it)
—He can better perceive depth (his options are limited)

—Also his body opens up away from pressure on the left rather than into pressure (he is facing the flank which is less defended rather than facing the goal on the right when he opens up his body, where it is more defended)

Rough illustrations here

You can simulate the depth that Martin Odegaard has on the left on the right if you change the partnership from a Saka type to a Jesus/Martinelli type.

This is why our RHS attack of Odegaard-Jesus looked good against Manchester City when Saka did not play in the Emirates game.

This is because Odegaard now has a runner/pacey type such that his drifting, sidefooted passes which arrives awkwardly and away from Saka's strong foot

—Arrives on Jesus' right strong foot
—Jesus is a stronger 1v1 operator so him being sent wide rather than through is effective

In other words, the partnership between Saka and Odegaard is not the most efficient right-sided partnership at Arsenal, ESPECIALLY when Arsenal are not playing against a lowblock.

Consider this partnership against a midblock or high press, for example.

I am incredibly confident that Saka's potential is being held back at this point by his partnership with Martin Odegaard.

There is an even better, stronger player than what you currently see were he to have access to a more empathetic, more dynamic passer or an overlapper.

Right now, BOTH Saka and Martinelli are being underutilized by Arsenal.

Arsenal have one of the most inefficient attacks in the world, especially against a midblock. Their best players' strengths are not being maximized. This is the cause of their results against such teams.

Since 2021, I have been proposing the idea of Martin Odegaard on the left.

Since 2021/22, I have been recommending that Martin Odegaard plays deeper and away from Saka

My recommendations for maximizing Odegaard

—Move him to the left

Or

—Play him deeper and away from Saka

Or

—Play him with a runner/1v1 type (a Jesus or Neto)

Arsenal listened to the 2nd recommendation this season and our chance creation exploded into November/December.

Martin Odegaard is not the problem. His partnership with Saka definitely is, esp in certain games.

You may not see it because you are only perceiving what has happened rather than what could happen or what could have happened better but this is the difference between us.

Maximizing your assets is one of the most important aspect of elite level management. This is what I try to do on this platform. Obviously, fans have no idea what this means when things are going well. They interpret it as “hate” & “agenda” but my track record speaks for itself.