In summer 2019, yet to turn 21, Odegaard set out on his third loan. This time it was to Real Sociedad, where he proved he was ready for La Liga – including scoring at the Bernabeu as La Real knocked his parent club out of the Copa del Rey.
“That season at La Real, in particular, was a turning point,” says Balague.
The Basques wanted him to stay another season, but Odegaard was beckoned back by Zidane to Madrid, where he started Real’s first two games before struggling with a calf injury.
“He was seen by many as part of the club’s future,” adds Balague. “But once again, he couldn’t crack the midfield trio of Modric, Kroos and Casemiro.
“Zidane gave him sporadic minutes, often out of position. By then, Odegaard had lost confidence – the rhythm and belief that made him stand out at Real Sociedad seemed to vanish.
“He wasn’t helped by untimely fitness struggles. He was clearly short of his best. That moment, potentially his real audition, slipped through his fingers.”
Having made just nine appearances in the first half of the season, a desire for first-team football led him to another loan move, this time to Arsenal.
That summer, after a productive spell in England, Odegaard returned to Madrid where Ancelotti had been reappointed manager.
Balague says no guarantee or “clarity of continuity” regarding his playing time was the “final straw” behind Odegaard leaving the Spanish capital permanently in August 2021.
“He had a frank conversation with Ancelotti,” explains Balague. “The Italian was honest: the competition would be fierce. In Odegaard’s mind, that meant he wouldn’t play. He wanted to feel important. To build something.
“Perhaps more importantly, there was a deeper disconnect. He never quite felt at home at Madrid.”
Before Tuesday’s game, Ancelotti praised Odegaard for having the “courage” to seek new opportunities and “become one of the best players in Europe”.
“I saw him as a real young player,” he added. “The talent he has now is the same talent he had at 17 years old.”
Odegaard, meanwhile, has never complained about his time in Madrid.
“I learned so much about what it takes to reach the top,” he has said.
He never really found a home until he arrived at Arsenal. In north London, Odegaard was finally able to settle and Lund, who first watched him 16 years ago as a young kid at Stromsgodset, still proudly tunes in every week to watch him play.
“It is hard for me to look back and see he was going to be a captain for Arsenal,” he explains.
“I would ask if you were drunk if you said that back then. But we all knew he was something special. He is a fantastic player, and an even better person.”
