Did Real Madrid just sign the next Lionel Messi in Martin Odegaard?
Real Madrid completed the signing of Norwegian wunderkind Martin Odegaard on Thursday for a figure reported to be in the range of $3.4 million. The 16-year-old attacking midfielder has been one of the most sought-after young talents in Europe and in signing him, Real beat out a host of top clubs including Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City.
The precocious talent scored five goals and made seven assists in just 15 starts for Norwegian side Stromsgodset and last year became the youngest player ever to play in a European Championship qualifier at the age of just 15 years and 253 days. So it's not difficult to see why Odegaard has generated such excitement.
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Capable of using both his right and left feet equally well, the 16-year-old is quick, versatile and has an exceptional knack for seeing the game around him for someone so young. He's also unusually unselfish for such a talented, attacking player, and unlike say a young Zlatan Ibrahimovic, has been known to pass the ball from scoring positions to teammates who are better placed.
Speaking to Real Madrid's website, Odegaard called it "an honor and a dream come true" to have signed with the 10-time European champions. Although not everyone is so sure that signing with a club as big as Real Madrid so soon was the right move for a player of Odegaard's age.
The annals of soccer history are strewn with the wreckage of young players, hailed as the "next big thing" that failed to live up to the hype. Freddy Adu, Nii Lamptey and Cherno Samba are just a few examples of promising young talents that ultimately withered under the weight of expectation. Former Denmark and Barcelona great Michael Laudrup was quoted by Spanish publication Marca as saying that if Odegaard were his son he "would just send him to Holland" to play in the Dutch Eredivisie.
One thing in Odegaard's favor is that he won't be immediately thrust into the spotlight of Real Madrid's first team. Instead, the teenager will suit up for Real's B team, or Castilla, which is coached by the French great Zinedine Zidane. There are few better mentors a young player could ask for than Zidane. What's more, part of Odegaard's contract also stipulates that his father, former professional soccer player Hans Erik Odegaard, will be retained by Real Madrid as a coach so he can maintain a hand in his son's development.
"I've trained a lot. My father has been very important to me," Odegaard said. "Training with him is what has allowed me to make it here."
For the time being, Odegaard will train with the first team and with Castilla, but will ostensibly play solely for the B team until the end of the season.
"My goal is to become the best player possible. It isn't important if I play in the first or second team," Odegaard said. "It's a major advantage having a second team of a really high level and with a coach who was one of the best players in the world."
In addition to having his dad and Zizou around to shepherd him, Odegaard has one another thing in his favor: his reputation for being levelheaded and mature for his age. Indeed, he does come across as being wholesome and down-to-earth. But beckoning global superstardom can be a major game-changer for anyone, especially a 16-year-old.
In the end, only time will tell whether Martin Odegaard will turn out to be yet another failed prodigy, or perhaps follow in the footsteps of another player who made his senior La Liga debut at just 16. You may have heard of him. His name is Lionel Messi.
Odegaard may get his chance sooner rather than later. Speaking at the player's unveiling at the Bernabeu on Thursday, Real Madrid director of institutional relations Emilio Butragueno said that "if [coach] Carlo Ancelotti wants to call on him, he is available."
