Captain confident team can handle pressure and learn
Havertz unavailable but Eze part of Arsenal’s squad
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.
