Martin Odegaard gave perfect response to Arsenal icon's captaincy call out in Man Utd win

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard delivered the ideal riposte to Tony Adams' recent demands for him to be stripped of the armband.

The Norwegian produced a performance worthy of the role during Arsenal's gritty 1-0 win at Manchester United on Sunday. The Gunners made the journey to Old Trafford shortly after club icon Adams claimed Arsenal are "not going to win the league with Odegaard as captain."

The former England defender, who secured four league crowns with the club and wore the armband for 14 years, argued the midfielder lacks the credentials to end the club's Premier League title drought. During a recent live taping of the Indo Sport podcast (via the Mirror), Adams declared: "I'm seeing Declan Rice as a captain, but I'm saying to Arteta, 'Come on, step up now. It's your time to be a winning manager and a fantastic manager, because you're not going to win the league with Odegaard as captain.'"

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Odegaard has subsequently addressed those remarks and offered glimpses into how he motivates his team-mates. Nevertheless, he reserved his most fitting response for Sunday's visit to Old Trafford, where he produced a skipper's showing under enormous scrutiny.

The 26-year-old proved instrumental in bailing Arsenal out of several tight situations and launching his team forward through swift counter-attacks. He also registered five clearances - with only William Saliba (seven) managing more among Arsenal players - and excelled at steadying the ship whenever United threatened to unsettle their visitors.

Manager Mikel Arteta has also backed his skipper after keeping Odegaard as captain. He recently disclosed the decision was made through a club-wide ballot, with overwhelming support for the former Real Madrid star to continue leading the side.

"My opinion is clear, and it's not just my opinion - it's all the staff and especially the players," Arteta told journalists before the Premier League curtain-raiser. "I asked them to vote [for] the captain, and I got the result yesterday.

"By a mile away, by a big, big 100 miles, everybody was choosing the same person, Martin Odegaard, which is the most clear sign that you can have. It's how they feel about who has to be their captain to defend, improve and win the matches that we want to win, so there's no question about that.

"There is [a vote] every year especially because we change [personnel] a lot, and we change the leadership groups, because a lot of the players that were there are now gone. So we need to re-establish that and because it gives you so much information, how they feel about themselves and how they see [the captain] as a leader. It was really interesting to analyse all the data and to gather information."

Sunday's Premier League opener is just the first step towards Odegaard genuinely demonstrating he's the right man to guide Arsenal to trophies. However, victory at the home of a fierce rival on the opening weekend is certainly not a poor manner to begin.

In a conversation with Sky Sports before the match at Old Trafford, Odegaard responded to Adams' criticism in a mature manner, saying: "It's a lot to be fair. It's a lot of small things. It's hard to describe it. It's more like a constant role you do.

"There's always these small things you have to do. In general, it's just how I see it is to get the best out of the team and how to give the team the right mindset. Help the players around you, get the best mindset in everyone.

"I think before the game just on the pitch I do a little one (team talk) and inside the dressing room we have different people talking. It's not just me, there's a lot of people sharing the responsibility, and the manager does a lot as well. It's a shared thing. It's not just me all the time."