“We can't feel sorry for ourselves” — Odegaard after Arsenal stunned by Fleetwood

Odegaard urges Arsenal response after Fleetwood shock

Martin Odegaard admits Arsenal have to do much better after a heavily-rotated Gunners side crashed out of the EFL Cup fourth round in a 5-3 penalty shootout defeat to fourth-tier Fleetwood Town.

Arsenal must improve after Fleetwood embarrassment, says Odegaard...

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard says the squad cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves and must respond quickly after their shock EFL Cup exit at Fleetwood.

The Premier League leaders were knocked out 5-3 on penalties in a major upset, with the fourth-round tie ending 1-1 after 90 minutes at Highbury Stadium.

Bruno Guimaraes saw his spot-kick saved by Jay Lynch in the shootout, leaving teenage defender Conor Haughey to fire home the decisive penalty for Fleetwood.

Fleetwood had taken the lead through Aaron Loupalo-Bi's first-half strike, before Viktor Gyokeres levelled for Arsenal after the break.

Manager Mikel Arteta made nine changes to his starting line-up, but after a disjointed first-half showing he introduced Norway midfielder Odegaard for the second half.

The visitors, beaten finalists last season, improved after the break but were wasteful in front of goal before highly-rated teenager Max Dowman was sent off five minutes from time.

Reacting to the exit, Odegaard said: “It's very frustrating to go out. Obviously, the way we've played was not on the level. We need to do much, much better than we did.”

💬 “We need to do much, much better than we did today.” Martin reflects on tonight 🗣️

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) October 28, 2026

Arsenal have little time to dwell on the defeat, with a difficult trip to Liverpool coming up on Sunday. The Gunners had moved level on points with Premier League leaders Manchester City last weekend.

“We can't feel sorry for ourselves. We need to move on - we have a big game at the weekend, so bouncing back at the weekend is all we can do now,” Odegaard added.

“Frustrating, but congratulations to Fleetwood, and we look forward to the next game already and bounce back.

“They did well so we have to give them credit, but I think (it) was about us not being on our level; we need to do better. I thought we improved during the game, but again, we need to step up even more - so that's a shame.”

Attention turns to the Premier League 👊 https://t.co/XJ3HLSFu9R

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) October 28, 2026