Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard explains what was 'annoying' about Real Madrid spell before he joined Gunners

The Norwegian grabbed the headlines back in 2015 when he signed for Real Madrid as a 16-year-old. He was touted as one of the brightest prospects in Europe, however, his stint with Los Blancos did not go as planned. After three loan spells away from Madrid, Odegaard joined Arsenal temporarily in 2021 before permanently signing for them six months later.

Since moving to north London, there has been no looking back for the midfielder as he kept on improving his game and is now considered one of the most important players in Mikel Arteta's squad. The Gunners captain recently opened up about his stint with Los Blancos and revealed the one aspect of that journey which annoyed him the most.

During a conversation with young Arsenal talent Ethan Nwaneri on the club's YouTube channel, Odegaard said, "It was annoying. Everyone just saw me as the young kid and you just want to be looked at as a normal player. I think it’s normal as well when you play at such a young age, it comes with a bit more attention. But as soon as you get older, and get more minutes, I think people start to forget your age and see your quality. They don’t care too much about your age and that’s the main thing."

He added, "I think when I came to Madrid and when I started training with the first team. All the big players were there like Ronaldo, Benzema and Bale. To just walk in there, in the dressing room and then go on the pitch with them and see their qualities. They were such unreal moments."

Arteta's side were off to a flying start in the 2024-25 Premier League campaign as they beat Wolves 2-0 on Saturday. They will next take on Aston Villa on August 24 in a league clash.