Martin Odegaard captained Arsenal during their title challenge (Picture: Getty)
Martin Odegaard admits Arsenal’s ‘painful’ Premier League title collapse will ‘bother me for the rest of my life’.
Sitting top for 248 days was not enough for Arsenal to clinch the title last season as Manchester City came through to lift the Premier League trophy for the third year in a row.
The Gunners enjoyed a sensational first-half to the season and maintained the momentum after the World Cup break until a drop-off in April and May.
Mikel Arteta’s side surrendered two-goal leads to draw to Liverpool and West Ham and then needed two late goals to avoid defeat at home to bottom-placed Southampton.
A deflating 4-1 defeat to Man City saw Pep Guardiola’s side take control of the title race and Arsenal failed to mount a comeback, losing to Brighton and Nottingham Forest in two of their final three games.
Asked what went wrong for Arsenal at the back-end of the season, Odegaard told Viaplay: ‘It’s difficult, there are many things that come into play, of course.
‘We competed against the team that has won it all, it was tight and even at the end, especially in the three games [that Arsenal drew], we lost momentum.
Manchester City pipped Arsenal to a third successive league title (Picture: Getty)
‘There are so many things that can affect the season, we were close and we must use the disappointment to go closer.
‘I think this will bother me for the rest of my life. We were very close, I almost managed to achieve my dream, I think it will be painful for the rest of my life but we have to try again next year.’
While Arsenal fell short of their first league title since 2004, there were a number of positives to take from the campaign, including the performances of Odegaard.
The Norway star scored 15 goals – becoming the first midfielder to reach that tally in the Premier League since 2017 – and provided eight assists in 37 games.
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‘This was a good season for me, I have delivered well and scored several goals,’ the 24-year-old added.
‘I have been more important to the team, it’s been good but of course a tough end to the season which still hurts. So I have mixed feelings.’
Arsenal kick-start the 2023-24 campaign on August 12 against Nottingham Forest.
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Sitting top for 248 days wasn’t enough to secure the title.