Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has lavished praise on teammate Fabio Vieira. The Norwegian says he enjoys playing alongside the Portuguese midfielder and hopes to do so for the foreseeable future.
He told football.london (via HITC):
“It’s brilliant to play with him. He’s a great player with great qualities, especially on the ball. I enjoy playing with him and hopefully we can do it more in the future."
However, Odegaard also claims that Vieira is a slightly different player than himself, despite the duo occupying the same position on paper as attacking midfielders. The Norway international added:
“He’s a little bit different to me. I don’t like to compare to much but we’re a little bit different and we can play different positions, both of us, so we’ll see in the future what happens.”
Arsenal secured Vieira's signature from Portuguese outfit FC Porto in the summer transfer window for a reported £34 million fee.
Despite facing injury problems after completing a move to the north London outfit, the attacking midfielder has managed to pull off a great start to the 2022-23 campaign. He has scored two goals and provided an assist in seven appearances across competitions so far this term.
Meanwhile, Odegaard has played an instrumental role in Arsenal's incredible start of the season under manager Mikel Arteta. The Norwegian midfielder has recorded three goals and an assist in eight Premier League fixtures so far.
Arsenal are currently first in the Premier League table after winning eight of their nine top-flight fixtures. The Gunners will next face Leeds United at Elland Road on Sunday (October 16).
Mikel Arteta sends message to Fabio Vieira following Arsenal's 1-0 victory over Bodo/Glimt
The Gunners head coach shared his thoughts on the Portuguese midfielder's performance in his side's UEFA Europa League encounter against FK Bodo/Glimt on October 13.
Arsenal secured a 1-0 victory over Bodo/Glimt away in Europe as Bukayo Saka found the back of the net in the 24th minute.
Arteta spoke about Vieira's performance after the game. The Spanish boss was asked whether Gunners fans should be excited by the Portuguese midfielder. He said (via METRO):
"Yes, you saw the quality. Every time he’s around the box he’s a real threat, really intelligent player and brave. In defending he still needs to do more and understand it more because organisation is key when you play against good teams in ball possession."