Arsenal suffer fresh Martin Odegaard transfer blow

Arsenal have been knocked back (again) in their efforts to sign Martin Odegaard for next season from Real Madrid, according to reports coming out of Spain.

Gearing up for a pivotal moment in the season on Thursday as the Gunners travel to Spain to face Villarreal in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final, Mikel Arteta will have been buoyed by the return of the Norwegian as a substitute in the previous outing against Everton.

It ended a four-match spell on the sidelines for Martin Odegaard, who has adapted superbly to the Premier League since his move from La Liga mid-season. The fans’ wishes for him to be kept on for next season, whether on loan or permanently, have even been matched by his temporary manager.

Whether this is feasible or not rests on three issues: Odegaard’s desire, Arsenal’s budget and Madrid’s stance. The first point is up for debate despite the 22-year-old said to have told friends he’d like to stay; the second issue rests on KSE’s intervention, but primarily whether Arsenal can win the Europa League, and the final point, according to AS, is a big fat ‘get lost’.

Arsenal suffer fresh Martin Odegaard transfer blow as Real Madrid insist Norwegian will stay

Spanish outlet AS is Madrid-based, and can be credited with drumming up stories to feed into the palms of the cities two big clubs. These alleged claims work in tandem with Mundo Deportivo and Barcelona.

Already since January have the chances of Madrid sanctioning Odegaard‘s departure ebbed and flowed. The latest suggests, quite firmly, however, that the midfielder is ‘necessary,’ ‘fundamental’ and ‘essential’ to Los Blancos’ short and mid-term plans. They are light in that department and firmly believe he will be world-class in the near future.

No plans whatsoever to sell him, despite the desire to bring in either one of Kylian Mbappe or Erling Haaland and having no money to do so, lodges a rather destructive spanner in already the malfunctioning works. Yet, as ever throughout this saga, not an official line has come out from the club or indeed Zinedine Zidane on the matter.

The situation, while seemingly ever-changing over where certified nutcase Florentino Perez resides, doesn’t alter for Arsenal: they have Odegaard here and now, and he will play a monumental part in whether this season can end in jubilation or further dejection.

Focus on getting him contributing for Arsenal in the Europa League and the rest will fall into place. If he can’t be secured for the future, then at build a platform where can put Arsenal in a strong position to secure his alternative.