Real Madrid loanee Martin Odegaard is showing more promise in a short space of time than Dani Cabellos has in his two seasons in North London. In fact, Ceballos has blotted his copybook in recent matches by giving away crucial goals or relinquishing possession in key areas.
By contrast, Odegaard hasn’t wasted much time finding his feet in the Premier League. It’s clear that he is at ease with the pace of the league and that his natural game is a perfect fit for Arsenal. Odegaard has great balance and touch but it’s his attacking intent and craft that the Gunners crave.
He’s able to glide upfield with ease and regularly changes position to find himself an opening to pose a threat or to assist the strikers. He sits back outside the box as he assesses his options, he thinks quickly and times his run into the box to perfection which will, in time, yield goals.
He looks comfortable within the team and is starting to understand the attributes of his teammates, how they move and how he can serve them best, as was evident during the game against West Ham. He’s a cerebral midfielder with the feet of a ballerina.
Let’s hope Martin Odegaard stays at Arsenal next season and beyond. He is looking better and better each game!
Here’s how he fared vs West Ham #WHUARS pic.twitter.com/tqIGJbczhs
— ArsenalVideo (@arsenal_video) March 21, 2021
His movement is very reminiscent of Bergkamp, who used to effortlessly traipse around the pitch sometimes unnoticed. Like the highly regarded number 10, Odegaard’s movement is likely to create pockets of space as he drags opposition players out of position allowing others to exploit the openings.
The rumours are that both the player and Arsenal would like to make the deal permanent in the summer but the main obstruction to that scenario is Zinedine Zidane and the price likely to be placed on the player’s head. Odegaard is currently valued at £36m, as per Transfermarkt, but rumours suggest that Real Madrid would be seeking double of that no matter how unrealistic that seems.
I doubt that anyone would pay that hefty sum for someone who hasn’t been able to show his full potential at one of the biggest clubs on the planet. £36m plus bolt-ons sounds feasible and if Arsenal sold off certain players in the summer, they would be able to cover the cost without much of a struggle.
As quoted by Marca via OneFootball, Zidane said of Odegaard before his loan move:
“He wanted to leave, we have spoken about it two or three times. He is a player who wants to play. Martin wanted to leave, he wanted to get minutes and chances elsewhere. The player demanded it. I told him to stay and fight, but it wasn’t to be.”
“In the end, it is everyone’s decision. I hope he is happy.”
Odegaard is, which is a huge plus, with the Norwegian stating that he “feels at home” however, those sentiments aren’t likely to have any bearing on negotiations with Real Madrid looking for hard cash in these lean times. Yet, the Madrid bubble has well and truly burst with the arrival of Covid-19, which seems to have put an end to their ridiculous spending spree for the world’s top players.
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Real Madrid and Barcelona have been locked in an unrealistic buying war for years, sometimes without considering where the players will fit but now it appears they may have to adjust their views which would assist in the Odegaard transfer. We are yet to see how valuations are impacted by the pandemic, yet one imagines that there has to be a levelling off period in terms of the astronomical fees until the world’s economy stabilises from the aftershocks of the virus.
There’s another factor that may yet assist Arsenal in their pursuit of Odegaard and that’s Madrid’s interest in Erling Haaland, who is said to be worth just a shade under £100m. Zidane may have to sell off some of his football jewels if he wants that deal to go ahead and Odegaard’s sale would be a decent down payment.
