Martin Odegaard to Arsenal: Loan deal agreed, no permanent transfer, Real Sociedad rejection
Arsenal are set to land Martin Odegaard as their second addition in the January transfer window.
JoriPress
Arsenal are closing in on a deal to bring Martin Odegaard to the club on loan from Real Madrid for the remainder of the season.
Mikel Arteta has been pushing for the addition of a creative midfielder this month and Odegaard's availability has alerted them to a deal.
The 22-year-old has found opportunities limited at the Santiago Bernabeu this season, featuring for just five minutes since the start of December.
That led the Norway international to request a loan exit from the club, having excelled with Real Sociedad last season.
While interest in Odegaard has been high, Arsenal are poised to win the race and will make the midfielder their second addition of the January transfer window.
Below is an updated account of stories related to the Gunners ' chase of Odegaard with the most recent at the bottom.
Loan deal agreed
Martin Odegaard is heading to Arsenal with an agreement for the Real Madrid midfielder in place, widespread reports have stated.
It has now been reported in Madrid, Sociedad and Norway that Odegaard is heading to north London, with Mikel Arteta and Edu convincing the player of a move.
In fact, Marca go as far as suggesting a deal could become official 'in the next few hours' and it has been confirmed by David Ornstein that the player did not train with the club on Thursday, instead completing gym work.
Purchase option
Arsenal will not have a clause in the loan agreement for Martin Odegaard to make the deal permanent at the end of the season, AS reports.
The preference of the Spanish side was always for any deal to merely be temporary and they did not want to include any such agreement for a permanent transfer.
In fact, that could have counted against Real Sociedad in their hunt to sign the player as it's added the Basque side 'wanted to achieve something more' having paid around €4m last season for Odegaard's temporary stint at La Real.
Real Sociedad 'rejected'
Arsenal's apparent victory in the hunt for Odegaard has come after Real Madrid rejected an approach from Real Sociedad due to the competitive fight in La Liga this season, Diario Vasco has stated.
La Real are currently seven-points behind Zinedine Zidane's side in the hunt for Champions League football and Los Blancos have a game in hand.
However, performances from the capital club have been less than convincing following back-to-back domestic cup exits this week and there is a concern that they could be sucked into a fierce top-four battle.
As a result, it's suggested that Real Madrid decided not to approve a loan to the Basque side, who are seen as a rival this season.
