Odegaard on why the crowd can help against Leeds

Every home game, Martin Odegaard gives you his thoughts on the goings-on around the club in his captain’s notes for the matchday programme. 

Ahead of this afternoon's game against Leeds, you can read a snippet of his latest column which includes his thoughts on our opponents, as well as why he thinks our supporters can play a key role during the game.

I came back to London on Wednesday and it was good to be back at the club and catch up with everyone about how they got on over the past couple of weeks. It’s always great to hear about what they were doing when they are away in their camps for their national teams, so we always have a good chat about that.

We face Leeds today, and our game against them earlier this season was one of the toughest we’ve played. We had a good first half that day, scored a good goal, but the second half was very different. It was a difficult game, there was more chaos, we had to defend well and it was a tough one in the end. We came through it though to get the three points.

We know whenever we play Leeds that they have a lot of quality, but they are also a very physical team in terms of sprinting, covering ground and playing with intensity. That’s what we have to be ready for – a team that can make it a very challenging game. It’s up to us to make sure we play the game we want to play, and not their game.

Whatever team you face in the Premier League, I think their position in the table doesn’t tell you too much. Every game is so difficult and any team can cause you problems. You need the same focus and same mindset going into every game. Obviously when you face a team that are fighting to survive you can expect the game to be less controlled maybe. Key moments can make a big difference so we have to make sure we get the basics right and do the simple things, not overcomplicate it.

But as I said, it feels great to be back here with our supporters after the internationals, because sometimes it can be tricky to get your momentum back straight away. So to be with our people today will help us, and hopefully you can all give us the extra energy that we will need this afternoon.

We want to keep that connection we’ve got that is so strong this season, and just look at the next game. It’s been important for us all season long, and we’d love to hear that noise again today.

Read the rest of Odegaard’s notes, as well as a host of other fantastic content, by buying a copy of the Arsenal v Leeds United programme either around the stadium or online.