'He is everything that we want': Mikel Arteta says Arsenal have a top talent in their ranks who's absolutely 'unique'

Arsenal are flying high in both the Premier League and in the Champions League, the culmination of years of solid work put in by everyone at the club.

In the space of five years, the Gunners have gone from upper-mid table to regularly challenging for the title and competing in Europe’s premier club competition.

In that time, Mikel Arteta has cleaned house at the Emirates and brought in players who are brilliant both in terms of footballing talent and character.

One Arteta signing in particular has been a revelation and the Arsenal boss has now described him as a “unique” player who’s “at the highest level” in every way.

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Mikel Arteta hails ‘unique’ Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard

The player in question is Martin Odegaard, who is set to captain Arsenal for the 100th time in Sunday’s Premier League trip to Fulham.

Odegaard spent some time on the sidelines after suffering an ankle injury while on Norway duty during the September international break.

However, since his return to action – and opportunity to fully recuperate during the November break – he has been firing on all cylinders.

When asked by the Arsenal media team about Odegaard’s importance, Arteta said: “He’s a massive player.

“He showed again in big matches what he can deliver, the spirit that he brings to the team and the quality that he has to play in the way we have to play, so I’m really happy.”

And when asked about Odegaard’s combination of performance and character, Arteta said: “Martin is unique.

“His character, his personality, the way he has been raised and educated is at the highest level and he is everything that we want to have to represent our team in the best possible way.”

One of the bargains of the century

Odegaard was one of the best youngsters in world football when he joined Real Madrid at just 16 years of age in 2015.

He was on their books until 2021, but only made a few senior competitive appearances for them.

Odegaard also took in four loan spells, including the one at Arsenal that led to Arteta signing him permanently.

The rest is history, with Odegaard becoming one of Arsenal’s best players, one of their youngest ever captains, and forming an almost telepathic connection with Bukayo Saka.

Arsenal reportedly paid just £30million for the 25-year-old, which has proven to be one of the bargains of the century.

Arsenal are next in action on Sunday when they head to Fulham for a Premier League fixture scheduled to kick off at 2pm GMT.