Martin Odegaard reveals main condition behind £30m Arsenal transfer return

Norwegian international Martin Odegaard returned to the Emirates Stadium earlier this summer on a permanent deal from Real Madrid following his loan spell with Arsenal last season

Martin Odegaard reveals main condition behind £30m Arsenal transfer return

Arsenal summer signing Martin Odegaard has stated that career stability was his prime reason for choosing to return to the Emirates Stadium.

The Norwegian spent the second-half of last season on-loan at the Emirates Stadium, with his performances being good enough to convince Mikel Arteta to pursue a permanent deal.

An agreement took a while to sort out between Arsenal and Real Madrid but Odegaard eventually became a permanent Gunner for a fee of £30million, whilst he penned a four-year deal in north London.

It was somewhat of a surprise to see Odegaard elect for a permanent switch having aimed to break through with Los Blancos and completed a number of loan deals in order to catch the eye in Spain.

However, he has since stated that one of his main reasons was to find a permanent home and stabilise his career.

Speaking on international duty, the 22-year-old said: “I wanted stability. I wanted to settle down somewhere with a lot of good players who want to establish the club back in the top, with a good manager. That’s why I think Arsenal is pretty perfect for me.”

Odegaard has so far made one appearance for Arsenal since his permanent return, playing 71 minutes in the 5-0 thumping at the hands of Manchester City.

He was one of six major additions to the squad this summer which includes Ben White, Aaron Ramsdale, Albert Sambi Lokonga and Nuno Tavares.

The Gunners also completed a deadline day deal for Bologna defender Takehiro Tomiyasu.

The Japanese will be handed his first opportunity to impress for the Gunners in their clash against Norwich City after the first international break of the season.