Although he will be on loan until June of 2018 and has only appeared in one competitive Real Madrid match since January of 2015, Martin Odegaard is happy being a part of the biggest club in the world. The 18-year-old hinted at signing a contract extension to stay with Madrid well past the expiration of his current deal this coming summer. Here are the details.
Martin Odegaard has been enjoying his time on loan at Eredivisie side SC Heerenveen over the last seven months or so. The young midfielder has been receiving regular first team minutes while on his 18-month loan with the mid-table side based in Heerenveen using Odegaard in 17 matches between January and May to wrap up last season.
That frequent playing time has carried over into the start of the new campaign as Martin has started in all three league matches and played the entire 270 minutes in a win and two losses thus far.
While he hasn’t contributed a goal or assist thus far this season, the young Norweigan international has been critical in build up play and ball movement, earning himself an average match rating of 7.58 through his first three starts of the season.
Odegaard is very focused on his future with his permanent club, Real Madrid, and hinted at signing a contract extension that will last “a little longer than 2018, at least.” The midfielder told Norweigan sports website VG that he will extend his deal with Los Blancos but kept the length of the deal quiet.
“I do not want to say so much about it at the moment,” he told the reporters. “It may come out when it comes out, so I will not stand here and talk more about it.”
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It was previously reported that the new contract would extend the promising player’s time in the Spanish capital until 2021, but nothing has been confirmed yet by the club, the player, or his agent.
While Real Madrid have a very good midfield and promising players such as Marco Asensio, Dani Ceballos, and Isco the future (and current) figureheads of the midfield, Odegaard could vie for a rotational role.
Odegaard featured prominently in Real Madrid’s Castilla team while he was still with the club from January 2015 until January 2017, but will likely be looked to as a first team player upon his return from this loan stint.
I was a bit skeptical when it was announced that Real were signing a 16-year-old for a decent sum of €2.5 million but it now appears that Martin is shaping up to be the player Real expected him to be when they made the investment a few years ago.
We will be sure to stay on top of the news of this potential contract renewal and keep you all posted.
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