As a long-time teammate of Dennis Bergkamp, Arsenal icon Ray Parlour knows the legendary forward’s game inside-out.
It’s why he believes Gunners skipper Martin Odegaard is somewhat of a reincarnation of Bergkamp and backed the Norwegian star to pull Arsenal out of their form slump.
Club captain Odegaard had been out of action since September after he sustained an ankle injury while on international duty..
However, he came off the bench in Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Inter Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday – a welcome sight for fans amid a nightmare decline in form.
Odegaard’s return to the starting line-up can’t come soon enough as Mikel Arteta’s side have slumped to three defeats from their last six games across all competitions.
The Gunners have also scored six goals in that run of games, albeit three came against second-tier Preston North End in the Carabao Cup.
Speaking on talkSPORT Breakfast, Parlour used Arsenal’s attacking struggles against Newcastle as a prime example of why they’ve sorely missed Odegaard.
“Well, he’s got the vision, he’s got that creativity,” Parlour said.
“If you look at the midfield area, you’ve got [Thomas] Partey, Declan Rice when he’s playing, [Mikel] Merino’s come into the side as well, very similar players, really. All very good players, don’t get me wrong. I’d like to see Declan get forward a little bit more when Partey plays.
“But if Odegaard’s in there, he’s that player who takes the ball in tight little situations. He sees a pass, he creates chances.
“When I watched the Newcastle game, they needed that little bit of creativity because Newcastle were very comfortable sitting in front of the defence. The midfield for Newcastle had done a great job, by the way.
“He just can bring something else from the team, a little bit different to the other players they’ve got. He’s a big miss, but I don’t know how fit he is and if he’s recovered. If he’s 80 per cent, play him for 70 minutes, I would.”
talkSPORT host Alan Brazil noted there was ‘something missing’ with Arsenal over the last few games, which Parlour agreed.
The 459-game Arsenal veteran then made the bold comparison of Odegaard and Bergkamp as he pointed out the pair share strikingly similar qualities in their game.
“Well, I look at Bergkamp when I played,” said the Invincibles hero.
“I wouldn’t say he [Odegaard] is as good as Bergkamp, but he’s very similar in the way he can see vision and he will create chances.
“What I’m saying is he can get into little areas, he’s a very clever player. You watch his vision when he puts balls through. He knows where the runs are going to come from. Against Newcastle, I didn’t see that. I didn’t see the creativity from Arsenal’s midfield.
“That’s what he can bring to the team if he does come back on the weekend.”
It will take something special for Odegaard to be spoken of in the same breath as Bergkamp among Arsenal fans.
The Dutchman made over 420 appearances for the Gunners across an 11-year career with the club.
He also scored countless iconic goals, none more so than his staggering strike against Newcastle in 2002 when he flicked the ball around a defender and coolly slotted home.
With 157 appearances for Arsenal under his belt, Odegaard has some way to go if he is to emulate Bergkamp’s feats.
But the immediate future will be the focus for Odegaard and the Gunners, with a bumper clash away to Chelsea on Sunday the most pressing issue at hand.
