Martin Odegaard: Erling Haaland is a good friend, we leave title race animosity on the pitch | OneFootball

Arsenal face champions Manchester City on Sunday in a huge title clash

Martin Odegaard and Erling Haaland are part of a WhatsApp group with some of the other players from the Norwegian national team.

Arteta insisted on Friday he did not take the jibe personally and it is the same with Odegaard, who insists any animosity between Arsenal and City players is confined to the pitch.

Erling Haaland told Mikel Arteta to “stay humble” earlier this season

Sky Sports

“I think in football, games like this, the emotions are so high and the adrenaline is there and everything,” he says.

“So, that’s something that can happen on the pitch and then when you walk off the pitch, then you are done with it. 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.

Odegaard and Haaland are “good friends”, but he will be hoping to get one over him on Sunday in what is a huge game in the title race.

Arsenal are currently six points behind league leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand, and they must raise their level to rein Arne Slot’s side in.

“We’re in a good position but still I feel like we have another gear, another step that we can take and hopefully we can hit that top form now until the end of the season,” says Odegaard.

To win one of the big trophies and especially the Premier League ... would be the biggest dream

Martin Odegaard

“We have to look forward and push for the goals to win the big trophies and we’re still in a really good position, so that has to be our focus.

“That is the big goal and I have been dreaming about this since I was a young kid - to win one of the big trophies and especially the Premier League was always something special growing up, so this would be the biggest dream.”

It has been a difficult season for Odegaard, who suffered an ankle injury in September that kept him out until November.

The injury was the first major one of the 26-year-old’s career and it was hard for him to watch from the sidelines, with the 2-2 draw at the Etihad in September one of the games he missed.

“It’s been strange for me,” says Odegaard. “It’s the first time I’ve properly had an injury, I was out for a while and it’s something I’m not used to, so it was frustrating and weird for me.

“After the injury, I felt like I came back really strong then maybe it took me some more time than I expected to find my consistency.

“But now I feel like I’m back to where I should be and got rid of the illness and hopefully I will just get better and better now.

“I feel like I’ve been in enough situations and created a lot for others, but I haven’t been clinical enough with the finishing. So that’s something that I really want to step up towards the end of the season.”

Away from the pitch, Odegaard has become a father after his wife, Helene, gave birth to a boy last month.

“It’s amazing - the best thing in the world and something that you can’t really describe,” says Odegaard. “I enjoy it and it’s special every day to come home to that.

“The main difference is when you get home it’s easier to switch off because you get so dragged into that world and then you forget everything else.

“If anything, I think it’s a change for the good because you can switch off more and it’s good for the mind to think about something else.”