Martin Odegaard took his tally to four goals in five matches with another composed winner in the 1-0 victory over Napoli, but afterwards the Arsenal captain was also on the receiving end of a few comments from Mikel Arteta that were slightly more pointed than the broad praise he has attracted in recent weeks.

Arteta had, unsurprisingly, been asked about his playmaker sustaining this form and becoming decisive not only in matches like this, but also in determining where the biggest trophies end up.

“First of all, he has to be available,” Arteta noted.

As simple as that may sound, especially given Odegaard featured in only 57 per cent of Arsenal’s matches last season - missing 27 of 63 - those familiar with both men say it was a very deliberate message.

Martin Odegaard continued his outstanding start to the season by scoring Arsenal’s winner in Naples.

It fitted with Arteta’s striking remark after the opening-day 3-0 win over Coventry City, when he said his captain “has a point to prove”.

That was understood partly as a reference to something Odegaard had heard repeatedly last season while he was struggling to get fully fit.

He was encouraged to picture what it would feel like to lift one of the major trophies, to be right at the centre of the photographs, and how he would want to have earned that by being influential; by producing those defining moments.

There were even occasions when Arteta felt he had to remind him of how vital he was, telling him: “you’re my man”.

If some of this sounds excessive when injured players can do little about their situation, part of it is about psychology and confidence, about giving them something to aim for.

There were periods when Odegaard is said to have needed exactly that.

If a more old-school reaction is to expect a tougher, more battle-ready response from your captain, the playmaker has always operated on a different level from that.

One reason Arteta handed him the armband is that Odegaard understands the manager’s tactical structure better than any other attacker, and also because he is so effective at passing that understanding on to others.

That is one of the reasons Arsenal look so much less fluid and connected in attack when he is not there.

Odegaard is said to have found it difficult when he was absent for so much of Arsenal’s title-winning season.

Odegaard binds everything together. Everything else then works around him. He is the player who leads the press, who activates the first pressing trigger. Once he goes, the rest of the attack follows. They know which spaces to occupy in order to trap the opposition, just as they so often did to Napoli. Naturally, that becomes even more effective when Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz are around him as well.

The statistic that Sunday’s win over Chelsea was only the fourth game those players have started together since December 2024 scarcely needs repeating.

That only underlines the point further. Arsenal have not merely been without the real Odegaard for one season, but for two. He has hardly looked the same since the ankle injury he suffered on international duty in September 2024, and he has repeatedly battled fitness issues ever since.

There were times when the playmaker felt that frustration deeply and was genuinely anguished by it.

Or, at least, he was scarcely the same player until the closing stages of last season, and then the World Cup.

Odegaard went into the World Cup fresh and has carried that form into the opening weeks of the season.

While nobody would accuse a modern professional of holding back, it would be naive to deny there can be some subconscious effect when a tournament of such importance to your country is approaching.

That is also why Arteta felt the need to reinforce that message to Odegaard, to strengthen his mindset.

In the end, Odegaard did get his major moment for that title image. He may have scored only once, but he was perhaps central to Arsenal’s most important goal of all, Leandro Trossard’s winner away at West Ham United.

By holding on to the ball and then releasing the winger, Odegaard showed the composure and awareness Arsenal had been lacking.

That goal effectively meant winning the league, but it also clearly meant something more to the captain. While everyone else leapt about in celebration, Odegaard was the only one who dropped to his knees, fists clenched.

Odegaard’s assist for Trossard’s winner at West Ham has been a crucial part of his reintegration into Arteta’s side.

That was the image, and it made lifting the trophy even more satisfying. Odegaard then took that momentum into the World Cup, giving his country the campaign they needed from their captain.

He was content as well, as seen in other memorable scenes such as handing the Viking drum to Erling Haaland.

Arsenal are now finally reaping the reward of that. Those who know Odegaard describe him as “a confidence player”. When he is in rhythm, he is really in rhythm.

“Last year, to have two shoulder injuries like he did, to have an MCL injury like he did, is tough for any player,” Declan Rice said. “But you see him at the World Cup and how he started this year…

"That's the Martin we know and we love."

Rice is confident that the Arsenal skipper is back to his best.

This may even affect how he comes back from injuries, because part of it is simply about how he feels. If Odegaard is purring, he is less likely to notice any lingering discomfort.

The same people say they now see someone fully engaged, someone with appetite and motivation again. It can be seen in a greater directness and in that readiness to shoot.

“He’s got that edge,” Arteta said. “And now he can start to occupy some very different heights in the team, especially in the attacking phase.

“He’s getting into these positions much more in recent games and I feel he has this emotional state that he knows that the ball can go in and he is playing an incredible football match.”

Much like that match against West Ham, there was a feeling here of a player ready to take on greater responsibility. Arsenal could not finish, squandering several chances he had created, so he simply went and settled it himself.

“That’s what we need," Arteta continued, "the players with that mindset to decide the game and to play with that personality that an action might not happen, that it’s the next next one, the next one… and keep insisting and keep taking chances and risks.”

Arteta needs Odegaard for his decisiveness around the box.

Arsenal certainly lacked that last season. But how often was it said?

Now the repeated point is that Odegaard has scored again. He already has four goals compared to last season’s one, and his influence is highlighted even more by the variety of finishes. So far, there have been two well-worked team goals - with two very different finishes - an opportunistic effort against Coventry City, and then Wednesday’s individual piece of quality.

The challenge will be keeping him producing like this. It is notable that Arsenal have made major changes to their medical and performance departments.

As one source put it: “In a game of small margins, the biggest difference is availability”.

Arsenal felt that sharply last season, especially with their captain. Right now, he is doing far more than merely being available. He is making everything happen and deciding big matches.