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Martin Ødegaard has accepted that Arsenal will remain open to criticism until they shed their nearly-men reputation and is confident the club are primed to do precisely that this season.
The captain cut a convincing figure on the eve of Wednesday night’s Champions League semi-final first leg at Atlético Madrid, insisting he and his teammates were ready to respond to the lessons of the past and deliver silverware.
Ødegaard was referring to the Champions League semi-final exit against Paris Saint-Germain last season but he might also have been thinking about the Premier League runners-up finishes in each of the previous three years. Arsenal are top of the table and chasing a first league title since 2004.
“It’s always going to be there until we win and that’s something you have to live with,” Ødegaard said. “We need to take all our experiences and the lessons and use them in a good way. It’s part of football and part of the journey.
“Tomorrow against Atlético is another great opportunity for us to do something special. We know what’s there and we just have to enjoy it and be ready for it … take all the lessons you know from the past and bring it into this end of season.
“ We’re in a great position to make history and that’s what we want to do. I’ve been in this club for a while now and I’ve seen the progression since I first came and how much we’ve improved. It’s been amazing to be a part of that and I probably want to take that last step and do something really big. That’s the biggest dream and what we’re working towards every single day.”
There is a weather warning in place for Madrid, with an electrical storm and heavy rain forecast. It stands to affect the game and a pitch at the Metropolitano Stadium that has attracted criticism. Barcelona complained that the grass was too long after their Champions League quarter-final exit on it, while it was noticeable that some of the Tottenham players struggled to keep their feet as they lost here in the last 16, first leg. Mikel Arteta promised his squad would “adapt to any context”.
The Arsenal manager reported that Kai Havertz was unavailable after he limped out of Saturday’s league win over Newcastle. Eberechi Eze is in the squad despite a fitness concern in the same game while Riccardo Calafiori has also travelled.
Arteta said: “We’re going to see a team that wants to be dominant, that wants to win it and that wants to start to decide the tie tomorrow. Now is the moment to make a statement and show how good we are, how much we want it and to make it happen. The opportunity is in front of us and we have to attack it.”
