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Martin Odegaard applauds the away fans after the FA Cup match between Manchester City and Arsenal at Etihad Stadium, Manchester, January 2023.

Watch: Martin Odegaard rages at Arsenal team-mate during Cup exit

Arsenal are out of this season’s FA Cup following Friday night’s defeat against Manchester City, and club captain Martin Odegaard failed to hide his frustration with team-mate Albert Sambi Lokonga during the match.

Sambi, who has been used sporadically by Mikel Arteta this season, came on at half-time to replace Thomas Partey at the Etihad with the game still goalless.

But his positional play was criticised in the lead-up to City’s winning goal, with many observers highlighting the amount of space he afforded Julian Alvarez.

And Odegaard, who also came on as a substitute, raged at Sambi’s positioning during a spell of City possession. Berating his team-mate to stop losing his man, the Norway international eventually gave a foul away to stop the move, before leaving Sambi in no doubt about his displeasure.

The young midfielder stormed down the tunnel after Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat and it’s clear that Sambi is currently struggling to find form.

ITV pundits Ian Wright and Roy Keane also discussed Sambi after the match, with Wright saying: “It felt like that, but you see with someone like Sambi, he needs to be playing, he needs minutes.

“He needs to be able to understand and be more wary of where he is and what he needs to do, where he needs to be.

“You’ve got to try and sense that danger and that’s why he needs minutes in games of this quality, because that’s where you’ll learn.”

Keane though was quick to respond as he added: “But at this stage, at that level, they’ve already learnt that part of the game. It’s a big concern.”

With Arsenal pursuing Brighton and Ecuador midfielder Moises Caicedo, Sambi may soon be surplus to requirements at the Emirates.


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