It is often said that Real Madrid You don’t leave… but they invite you to do so by showing you the exit door. In recent years, however, there is one exception that generated quite a bit of noise at the time. Five years ago, Martin Odegaard got tired of waiting for Kroos o Modric took a step to the side and asked to leave the Real Madrid. Now, he arrives as captain of the Arsenal to this final of the Champions having raised the Premier after 22 years of long waiting.
“He Real Madrid It was a dream. It is the biggest club in the world. But I needed to find a place where I could settle. “Everyone had good intentions and I don’t blame anyone,” he said in ‘The Players Tribune’ back in 2023 a Martin Odegaard whose arrival at the white club, at just 16 years old, represented a true revolution.
He quickly learned that, to gain a foothold, he needed to assert himself away from the Bernabeu. A situation that, in a certain way, could come to resemble that of Nico Paz. He grew up in Heerenveen (16-17 and 17-18), matured in the Vitesse (18-19) and exploded in the Royal Society (19-20). Won a return ticket to Real Madrid. But, with just nine games and 370′ under his belt, in January he was loaned to a Arsenal which, six months later, acquired its rights for 35 million.
I needed stability to be able to establish myself in a place with good players who want to progress together
“I needed stability to be able to establish myself in a place with good players who want to progress together,” acknowledged one Martin Odegaard to which Mikel Arteta He gave him the captain’s band and set the pace at which the Gunner team had to grow. “After speaking with him and EduI was convinced that it was the right step for my career. “I had no doubt.”
“He wanted to leave to have minutes and opportunities elsewhere. It was a demand from the player. We spoke two or three times. I told him that he had to stay, fight and have peace of mind because it is a long process. I asked him to return from training. Real“, revealed Zinedine Zidane at the time. “He went looking for other experiences and now he is one of the best in the world in his position,” emphasized one Ancelotti which made it debut in 2015.
Five years after that movement, which forced him to leave the umbrella of the Real Madrida Martin Odegaard He has had to live his most delicate season since he arrived at the Arsenal. At 27 years old, injuries have taken their toll on him and have barely allowed him to find regularity. He has been away a total of 137 days for seven different reasons. Consequently, he has only been able to participate in 35 of the 62 matches that the ‘Gunner’ team has played before this final of Champions.
“It has been frustrating being away from the field. I love playing football and I want to do it in every game. It has been challenging. But I have tried to be close to the team and help in the best way possible,” he lamented. Martin Odegaard. Even more so, he did it Mikel Arteta “He is our captain and a player who gives us a completely different dimension. Above all, in attack.”
Odegaard’s key passing map
He knows what is being said. And, despite being far from the version that led him to be one of the best offensive midfielders on the planet, the Arsenal flows in a different way when Odegaard He is on the pitch because of his dynamism when it comes to bringing his teammates together, generating connections and breaking lines. Not in vain, he is the player on the squad who averages the most passes in the final third of the field (26), the one who makes the most deep passes (1.31) and the one who creates the most opportunities (2.56).
“He is the one who connects everyone and the one who makes everything flow in a way that no one else can do. It is an enormous quality. He is the captain, he is the leader, he is the one who sets the tone in practically every phase of the game. He is such an intelligent player that he can change the game at any moment,” he noted. Arteta.
He is the captain, he is the leader, he is the one who sets the tone in practically all phases of the game
Timing in the world of football is everything. Now, it seems unlikely to think that, if he had endured in the shadow of Kroos y Modricnow could be the ‘brain’ that the Real Madrid. “This is what I have dreamed of all my life,” he acknowledged after raising his head. Premier and Odegaard who decided to write his story elsewhere… and now he can be the man who lifts up to heaven Budapest the first Champions in the history of Arsenal.
