“How can you not enjoy it?” Martin Odegaard asked when questioned about embracing the pressure ahead of Arsenal’s Champions League semi-final with Atletico Madrid. “We’re playing in probably the toughest and most competitive league in the world and we’re at the top fighting for the title. We’re in the semi-final in the Champions League. For me, it’s hard to understand how you can’t enjoy that.”
Arsenal’s recent form has not looked carefree — Saturday’s hard-fought 1-0 win at Newcastle was only their second victory in seven matches — but captain and manager arrived in Madrid confident and upbeat.
“This is the stage that we want to be on and we have earned it through incredible work, passion and quality in the last nine months,” Mikel Arteta said at his pre-match press conference. “Now is the moment to make a statement and show how good we are, how much we want it and make it happen. The opportunity is in front of us and we have to attack it.”
The club’s title tussle with Manchester City has dominated Arsenal’s season as they chase a first top-flight crown in 22 years, but in Europe they face an even more historic prospect. Arsenal are two matches away from only the second Champions League final in the club’s history and are in back-to-back semis for the first time, having never won the competition.
“I don’t take it for granted,” Arteta added. “Because a very short time ago, this club had seven years without the Champions League. So, in those very short periods of time, what we have achieved is remarkable. And we know the difficulty of it. It’s a massive privilege to be here again, two years in a row, in the semi-finals of the Champions League, representing our club.”
Arteta promised a team that will seek to dominate. “What an opportunity. We are going to grab it with both hands. You are going to see a team that wants to be dominant, that wants to win it, and wants to start and decide the tie.”
There is realism about the task. Arsenal have sometimes looked burdened by expectation and Odegaard acknowledged the psychological weight of past near-misses. “That is always going to be there until we win it. That’s something we have to live with. We have to take all the experiences and the lessons. That’s part of football and part of the journey. It’s the best part of the season. Everyone is up for it. Everyone is excited. It’s another great opportunity for us do do something special. We have to take all the lessons from the past and take them into this. We’re going to do that.”
Offensively, Arsenal have struggled in the second half of the season, scoring just five goals in their last seven games across all competitions. Nevertheless, their last meeting with Atletico — a 4-0 league win in October — provided evidence of their attacking potential, and Arteta insisted the approach will be the same at the Metropolitano.
Defensively, Arsenal have been solid in Europe, conceding only once across four knockout ties against Bayer Leverkusen and Sporting. Any suggestion that they would adopt a conservative stance against Diego Simeone’s experienced side was dismissed. “It’s going to be a really tough match. They are a team and manager that have so much experience in the competition. They have every right to be here because of what they’ve done. It’s remarkable. We know the difficulty of the match but we have shown in Europe, in any ground, what we are capable of. We have to play with that confidence, with that desire and that will to come here to win the game.”
Odegaard accepted some external noise is unavoidable and said the challenge is to remain mentally strong. “For some people, maybe stay away from the phone,” he said. “But in today’s society it’s impossible to not see things. It’s about being strong mentally and being focused on the right things, to live day by day and game by game. It doesn’t matter what the people say. We can’t control that. We can work every single day as hard as we can. Just keep doing that. It’s massive for all of us. We’re in a great position to make history and that’s what we want to do.”
The captain reflected on his time at the club and the progress he has witnessed. “I’ve been at this club for a while now and I’ve seen the progression. It’s been amazing to be a part of that. We want to take that last step and do something really big and that’s what we’re all working towards every single day.”
Arteta also shrugged off questions about potential bad weather in Madrid. “We adapt to any context. For the last nine months, imagine the amount of games we have played. We have played in different scenarios, different contexts, with different opponents. So we adapt to the conditions tomorrow in the best possible way to be ourselves and win the game.”
Odegaard, who has endured the most injury-hit season of his Arsenal career, said missing time has been frustrating but has fuelled his desire. “Obviously it’s been frustrating to be away from the pitch. I love to play football. I want to play every single game. I’ve just tried to make the most of it and help in any way I can. I think I’ve done a good job to stay fit as well and come back in the best possible condition. It’s the hardest thing for a player to be out injured. You can’t affect the game. You can’t be on the pitch. It’s tough but it’s part of life as a footballer. You’ve got to see the positive side. You also get even more hungry to get on the pitch and enjoy it even more.”
Arsenal head to Atletico mindful of the challenge but confident in what they’ve built and determined to seize a rare chance to make club history.