Arsenal signed Martin Odegaard in a permanent transfer from Real Madrid CF, the Premier League club confirmed on Friday. The deal is worth £24m plus a further £6m in add-ons.
The attacking midfielder spent the second half of last season on loan in north London. He made 14 appearances in the Premier League and now joined Arsenal on a permanent deal. In that period, Odegaard made 20 appearances, scoring twice in Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur at Emirates Stadium in March.
Odegaard has signed a four-year deal with the option of an extra year, became the fourth signing of Arsenal this summer. He joins the list of Ben White, Albert Sambi Lokonga, and Nuno Tavares. Martin will wear the legendary number 8 shirt at the North London club. He will not be available for Sunday’s match with Chelsea, as per a release on Arsenal.com.
Football Career
Odegaard made his professional debut for Norwegian side Stromsgodset in 2014 as a 15-year-old. He became the youngest-ever player to feature in Norway’s top division. (http://rxreviewz.com/) He moved to Real Madrid in January 2015 and went on to become their youngest player in May 2015.
In the three seasons from 2017/18, Martin spent loan spells with Heerenveen and Vitesse Arnhem in the Netherlands and then back in Spain with Real Sociedad in 2019/20, where he helped the club to reach the final of the Copa Del Rey. He made his international debut against the United Arab Emirates in August 2014, becoming the youngest debutant for the senior team at the age of 15 years and 253 days.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta on Martin Odegaard
“A lot of things that he brought last season. He made us better, we needed more options and alternatives for creativity. He is still a really young man but he has huge experiences in clubs already and has unique talents for the way we want to play so I am really pleased the club have made the effort.” (To Skysports)