Martin Ødegaard [8]

Martin Ødegaard was once again in fine form for Arsenal on Sunday afternoon, when his side put local London rivals Tottenham Hotspur to the sword in a comfortable 2-0 victory. The result not only provided valuable bragging rights for fans of the Gunners, but also saw Mikel Arteta’s team stretch their lead at the top of the Premier League table to eight points. And the Norwegian international played a pivotal role in the result. 

If Arsenal had ever been a serious contender to win the Premier League this season, Mikel Arteta made a point of highlighting just how far off his team were from the standard required to achieve that goal, following Wednesday night’s 3-1 defeat to Manchester City. Not only did the result allow Pep Guardiola’s reigning champions to reclaim top spot in the English top-flight, but it perhaps also showed Arsenal what was needed from them if they were to win their first league title in over 20 years. 

Arsenal’s impressive 4-0 win over Everton on Wednesday night was a match that went some way to summing up the club’s Premier League season to date. Following some initial difficulties to break down their opponents, Mikel Arteta’s side eventually found a route to goal thanks to the genius of three key players: Buyako Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Ødegaard. And, once again, all three players ensured that their side stayed top of the English top-flight table.

The richest and most valuable league in the world has added another €100 million in market value. Overall, 171 players saw their market values updated. The cumulative squad values of the 20 Premier League clubs now amount to around €10.4 billion. The biggest winners are Arsenal, Brighton, and Manchester United, while Liverpool, Tottenham, and Chelsea have to accept the biggest losses. Despite massive upgrades for winter transfers such as Enzo Fernández and Mykhaylo Mudryk, the bottom line for the Blues is a minus as several players, including Kai Havertz (-€10m) were downgraded.

The Premier League market value update gives us a new t most valuable footballer in the world in Erling Haaland. It also ensures that five of the seven biggest winners are to be found in Brighton’s squad and Chelsea, together with Liverpool, have to accept the heaviest losses. For 19 of the 545 players there is an increase of €10 million or more, while for 14 footballers there value drops by €10m or, as in the case of the suspended Ivan Toney, by even more.

Former England and Manchester United defender Gary Neville was full of praise for Arsenal midfielder Martin Ødegaard after an impressive performance during his side’s 1-0 victory over Everton in the Premier League. Although it was Bukayo Saka that ultimately found the breakthrough in the 69th minute to set up Leandro Trossard’s goal, Neville singled out the Norwegian talent for praise.

Despite the Premier League being the richest league in the world, and what many consider as the best league in the world, it has also still found the time to be the breeding ground for some of the greatest young talent in world football. The English top-flight seemingly has it all. From teenage sensations, to the very best player in their prime, to the older heads using their experience to guide their teams to glory. 

For many years the captaincy of Arsenal football club had an air of disaster attached to it. Most football fans the famous incident where Granit Xhaka responded to jeers from the home fans by swearing at the ers and was subsequently stripped of the captaincy in 2019. But for the last two decades the Gunners captaincy has bounced from one calamity to another. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang took the armband off of Xhaka, but then left it in unharmonious circumstances himself just two years later after a big falling out with the manager. Before that it was Laurent Koscielny, who left the club in bitter fashion himself. Preceding him, Per Mertesacker and Thomas Vermaelen, who although boasted decent leadership skills, were rarely in the starting line up. 

The Premier League season is almost over and it’s time to hand out individual awards to players who’ve enjoyed outstanding campaigns. Manchester City look destined to win their four consecutive title but which players have stood out over the course of the season?

This Monday May 27, the most valuable football league in the world, the Premier League, received 530 new market values, increasing its total value by €10.30 million to a new total of €11.08 billion. Seven Arsenal players, Manchester City star Phil Foden, and Chelsea's Cole Palmer were among the biggest winners in this latest update, whilst Crystal Palace increased the most in market value as a club. At the other end of the scale West Ham lost the most market value, whilst there was also 12 downgrades for Chelsea players and seven for Manchester United stars.