Martin Odegaard insists Arsenal will use the disappointment of missing out on the Premier League title to Manchester City last season to come back even stronger when the new campaign gets underway.

The Gunners led the Premier League title race for 248 days last season before they were eventually chased down by Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, who went on to win the treble, leaving the north London side trophyless for a third straight season.

However, despite the disappointment of not winning a first title since 2004, Arsenal did secure a return to the Champions League for the first time since the 2016/17 season.

Mixed feelings

Arsenal captain Odegaard, speaking exclusively to Sky Sports News on his side’s pre-season tour to the United States, admitted there are still mixed feelings about last season but insists his side will use the disappointment to try and bring trophies to north London next season.

“There are a lot of mixed feelings [about last season],” said Odegaard.

“We are proud to see how far we’ve come and how much we have improved in the last few years. To be there and fight for the title against the team who have won everything, it’s a good step for us but at the same time it still hurts to be so close to winning.

“Our dream was to win and that’s what we want, so it still hurts, but we have to use everything we learned from last year in a good way just like we did the year before. We missed out on the Champions League, but we came back even stronger and even more prepared.

“We have to do the same now to come back and use the disappointment in a good way, and that is what we’ll try to do.”