Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard reveals tactical tweaks that inspired Gunners' comfortable win over Newcastle

After losing 1-0 to Porto in midweek, Odegaard has revealed that a small tactical shift led to the Gunners' thumping win over the beleaguered Magpies on Saturday. The Norway international was positioned in a more attacking position, pressing forward, with Declan Rice and Jorginho sweeping up behind him.

Odegaard told TNT Sports: "We tried to do a lot of the same things, they [Porto] defended well and it was not our best game offensively. Today we were so aggressive, Jorginho and Declan Rice were good at threading between the lines - that was the difference. We want to play in the final third and create things all the time. We have been playing a few different ways and I have been dropping a bit more and Jorginho and Declan have done that today - I played a little higher up."

He added: "It gave us the extra motivation today [losing to Porto midweek] also what happened against Newcastle last time [1-0 loss at St. James Park] gave us that extra motivation. We just wanted to come here and make a good game and give the fans a good game."

Arsenal's win is a vital one as they attempt to keep pace with the Premier League leaders, Liverpool. The Gunners sit third, two points behind the Reds, who play Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.

The Gunners are next in action against bottom club Sheffield United next Monday. They then play Brentford before the second leg of their Champions League clash with Porto.