Hall of shame display: 4/10 Arsenal dud had his worst game all season v PSG
da supremo： Well, that is about as deflating a night as Arsenal fans are going to experience this year.
da winzada777： Mikel Arteta’s side played host to Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final last night, and instead of repeating the heroics of their game against Real Madrid, they seemed to just shrink.
It took all of three minutes for the visitors to take the lead through Ousmane Dembélé, and while the Gunners had a few chances of their own, the French side was undoubtedly the better team overall, taking a 1-0 lead back to Paris next week.
Arsenal's biggest underperformers against PSG
It would be fair to say that, apart from David Raya, none of the starters really stood out for the right reasons, but there were undoubtedly a few who stood out for all the wrong ones.
Indeed, with Thomas Partey forced to sit out through suspension after his daft yellow card in Madrid, Arteta’s side were forced to make some changes.
The most notable of which saw Mikel Merino play in midfield with Leandro Trossard playing as the centre-forward.
While it was Merino who saw a second-half goal ruled out for offside, Trossard had a poor night at the office and didn’t give Arsenal the out-ball his Spanish colleague has provided so well since becoming a makeshift striker.
Not only did the Belgian struggle to hold up the play but he was also missed a gilt-edged chance in the second half. Sent through on goal, the winger came close to equalising from close range but was denied fabulously by Gianluigi Donnarumma in the PSG net.
Gabriel Martinelli was another who missed a fine opportunity to score on what was a frustrating night for the Brazilian.
Following on from his winning goal at the Bernabeu earlier this month, there was hope, if not an expectation, that Martinelli would once again rewind the clock to his 22/23 form against PSG last night, but that just didn’t happen.
While he still fulfilled his defensive duties, the Brazilian wideman was a frustrating watch in attack, failing to make the most of the few chances created for him.
Moreover, with how often Hakimi got forward, there was certainly space for him to exploit, but he just couldn’t, and then, with almost the final kick of the game, he blazed the ball into row Z.
It might sound harsh, but it’s an opinion shared by the Independent’s Jamie Braidwood, who awarded the winger a 5/10 at full-time, and one backed up by his statistics.
For example, in his 95 minutes of action, the 23-year-old failed to find the back of the net with an expected goals figure of 1.08, took two shots off target, failed in 100% of his dribbles, missed two big chances, made just six passes, misplaced two of three crosses and was offside once.
Martinelli’s game in numbers
Minutes
95′
Expected Goals
1.08
Expected Assists
0.03
Passing Accuracy
6/10 (60%)
Crosses (Accurate)
3 (1)
Shots On Target
1
Shots off Target
2
Dribbles (Successful)
1 (0)
Duels (Won)
5 (2)
Lost Possession
8
Big Chances Missed
2
Offside
1
All Stats via Sofascore
However, as bad as Martinelli was, one of his teammates was even worse.
Arsenal's worst performer vs PSG
So, while a few other starters let themselves down somewhat last night, one quick glance at social media will reveal to you just who the worst offender was: Martin Odegaard.
It was a night that demanded a captain’s display, but instead of that, the Norwegian international put in what content creator Connor Humm described as a “hall of shame” performance.
The man who should be unlocking defences for the Gunners was instead completely ineffective for the vast majority of the game, and even when he did do something right on occasion, he’d only go and lose the ball or make the wrong pass right after.
It was possibly his most disappointing showing of the campaign yet, which is odd for someone who has undoubtedly been one of Arsenal’s best players of the Arteta era. However, since his ankle injury earlier in the campaign, he’s been way off it, scoring just five times in 2024/25.
While that sounds unfair, it is once again an opinion shared by the aforementioned Braidwood, who gave the 26-year-old a 4/10 match rating, while Humm further laid into him, saying that he was so anonymous at times that he may as well have just “sat in the stands.”
Unsurprisingly, such damning indictments of the captain are more than justified by his statistics, as in 89 uninspiring minutes, he amassed an expected assists figure of just 0.08 and no expected goals figure, he misplaced 100% of his crosses, didn’t take a single shot, failed in five of six dribbles and only won 25% of his duels.
Odegaard’s game in numbers
Minutes
89′
Touches
42
Expected Goals
0.00
Expected Assists
0.08
Assists
0
Passing Accuracy
24/27 (89%)
Crosses (Accurate)
3 (0)
Shots
0
Dribbles (Successful)
6 (1)
Duels (Won)
8 (2)
Lost Possession
14
All Stats via Sofascore
Ultimately, last night was a massive disappointment for Arsenal, and if they are to overturn PSG’s one-goal advantage next week, then Odegaard is going to have to either put in a substantially improved display or be dropped entirely.
Indeed, his performance meant the team were practically playing with ten men at the Emirates and in truth, he may not be good enough to be a regular starter anymore.
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