Arsenal is in advanced negotiations to sign Real Madrid midfielder Martin Odegaard on loan.
Odegaard has made it clear that he wants to leave this month in order to play regular football with the first team, having played only nine times in all competitions for Real Madrid this season.
Real Madrid have had fruitful talks with the Norwegian international player in the past 24 hours, while negotiations with Arsenal are progressing well, although no agreement has yet been reached.
Real Sociedad was keen to re-sign Odegaard after a long-season loan deal last year, but Real Madrid is believed to prefer sending the 22-year-old to a club outside La Liga.
Odegaard scored seven goals and 9 assists in 36 matches on loan in La Liga last season, prompting Real Madrid to cut his two-year loan deal and make him part of their first team.
A number of Premier League clubs have also been interested in Odegaard, including Leicester, although the Foxes chose not to follow the Norwegian international after initial discussions.
What will the one-time freak Odegaard bring to the Premier League?
Peter Smith from Sky Sports:
What will Odegaard achieve in the Premier League? Well the hype, hope, and a lot of media attention for beginners.
The attention of the soccer world focused on him in 2015, when, a month after his 16th birthday, Real Madrid won the race to sign him – interest in the now-22-year-old is expected to ignite.
Odegaard was, already an international player in Norway, when he joined Real Madrid, he immediately started training with the first team and became the youngest player ever in the last game of that season, and he had drawn interesting comparisons with Lionel Messi.
At the time, expectations of what Odegaard would become at the Bernabéu knew no bounds – but his progress, perhaps disappointing to some, has been much quieter since then, as the gradual progression of the midfield technician began.
But patience is paying off now. After a disappointing 18-month loan spell in Heerenveen, Odegaard had a distinguished season in Wittice in 2018/19, creating more chances than any other player in the Dutch Premier League, and finishing third on the assists list of Dusan Tadic and Hakim Ziyech.
He backed her with an impressive season at Real Sociedad last year, when he hit double figures for his goalscoring contributions, and he was called up to Real Madrid as a result.
While it was ultimately difficult to find a way to reach Zinedine Zidane’s squad, Arsenal are now ready to have a sophisticated innovator, pass manager and attacking midfielder with great touch and a bright perception of the game.
Odegaard will bring excitement on and off the field.
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