Arsenal and Manchester City’s fiery rivalry is a natural byproduct of both teams’ desire to be the best, the north London club’s captain Martin Odegaard said ahead of their Premier League 2024-25 clash at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Arsenal finished runner-up to City in 2022-23 and took the Premier League title race to the final day last season before once again finishing second behind Pep Guardiola’s side.
Tempers flared during their last meeting in September as Odegaard’s Norwegian compatriot Erling Haaland threw the ball at Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes and directed heated words at Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, asking him to “stay humble”.
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“I think in football, games like this, the emotions are so high and the adrenaline is there and everything. That’s something that can happen on the pitch and then when you walk off the pitch, then you are done with it,” Odegaard told British media.
“It is not something I think too much about. I think it is normal when you play these big games that there is a big rivalry. You are competing and you want to be the best. So, that’s how it should be and there should be a little bit of heat sometimes. But then, I think a lot of the players know each other from the national team – England, Brazil, me with Erling – so on the pitch and off the pitch it is a bit different. When we are on the pitch, then it’s a good battle,” he added.
City is fourth in the league standings with 41 points while second-placed Arsenal, with 47 points, is six points behind leader Liverpool, which has a game in hand.
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