Now Eur Gunner believe us

ODEGAARD KNEW QUALITY OF SQUAD COULD CLINCH A TOP-FOUR FINISH

MARTIN ODEGAARD insists Arsenal never stopped “believing” they could win a Champions League place this season.

Now Odegaard says it will be extra “special” to clinch that at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and at the expense of their bitter rivals.

The Gunners made a nightmare start to the season – when they lost their first three games – and the pressure quickly mounted on boss Mikel Arteta.

But they have responded in spectacular fashion and are now on the brink of reaching Europe’s premier club competition for the first time since 2016.

Norwegian midfielder Odegaard, 23, said: “We had a difficult start but we knew the quality we had in the team.

“We knew it was going to be hard. I think everyone just kept believing and that is paying off.

“It will be a big game, of course. We know what we’re playing for and we know the history of these games and how big it is for the fans. It’s going to be a massive game, so we’re looking forward to it.

“Champions League was our big goal this season, so if we can do it we’ll be very happy. Of course to do it there will be special, but the most important thing is to get there and not the way we do it.

“When I signed I said I really believed in the team, I really believed in the project of the manager, and everything the club wanted to do. So I believe we had the chance to do it.

“Maybe we’re a bit ahead of schedule, but still we haven’t done anything. We have to finish it and get into the top four. So that’s the focus now and I think we’re doing well.

“We have to show it in the last games and finish the job. We have to make sure we finish top four, and if we do then we deserve it.

“We’re ready for it and we have to fight for it, so we’ll see.”

Arsenal created controversy by getting the original north London derby date postponed back in January.

They only had one positive case in the squad and were depleted by injuries rather than Covid, which left Spurs fuming.

However, the Gunners still felt aggrieved from their start to the season when Covid ripped through the squad and the players sat in a hotel room at 3.30pm on the afternoon of the Brentford season opener unsure if it would go ahead.

The row will only add extra spice to a derby with so much at stake.

Tottenham must win, an Arsenal victory will clinch a top-four place but a draw will still keep them in the box seat with two more games to go.

Arteta said: “It’s true that it’s many months ago since that game. We are much closer to the end of the season and the game has taken on a much different level of importance because of the situation that we both are in.”

It could be the biggest derby at Spurs since Arsenal won the title in 2004 but could also be the most evenly contested under the lights since the Littlewoods Cup semi-final replay in 1987, when George Graham’s side won, went on to lift the trophy and sparked an era of success.