Arsenal attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard turned down a move to Tottenham in order to secure his switch to the Emirates, according to Norwegian journalist Arilas Ould-Saada.
The Gunners had been in negotiations with Real Madrid to take the 22-year-old on loan for a number of weeks, but Spurs tried to muscle in on negotiations:
? Edu reached out to Ødegaard's people 3 weeks ago. @SpursOfficial made a move.
?️ Decisive meeting between MØ and Zidane after Athletic game.
? Wages much closer to 100.000£/week than reported. Deal worth €4m.
The whole story behind the scenes (+):https://t.co/9a4huCzsBn
— Arilas Ould-Saada (@arilasos) January 28, 2021
However, it seems that discussions with manager Mikel Arteta swayed things in the Gunners’ favour and fans on Twitter are delighted that Odegaard decided against moving to their North London rivals:
the pull is real ?
— CJ (@cjm3xrs) January 28, 2021
He made the right choice
— Papa Ndia (@Obongowoibesik1) January 28, 2021
Cos he knows he won’t win trophies with them.
— Exclusive Invincibility (@u000024) January 28, 2021
Of course You can’t stay without a silverware throughout your career
— Nurky (@KLZ39) January 28, 2021
We’re gargantuan
— Jessica Lee Of Lagos (@royaldivalee) January 28, 2021
I love him already
— Maina Njoroge (@MainaNjoroge20) January 28, 2021
The levelsssss
— Zack Kirkwood (@YaGoonersYa) January 28, 2021
He chose a bigger club over a very small club.
— Alusine Sheku Kamara ?? (@AlusineSheku) January 28, 2021
Arteta has said that the club could secure Odegaard on a permanent deal at the end of the season if the playmaker proves himself and Real are open to doing a deal.
The Norwegian international could well make his debut against Manchester United this weekend, although it’s likely that he’ll only make the bench were he to be passed fit to play in the match.
