How can Real Madrid line up with Martin Ødegaard in the XI?

As a central midfielder

Under Imanol Alguacil, Martin Ødegaard was mostly used as a central midfielder in a 4-3-3 or a 4-4-2 alongside Mikel Merino and Igor Zubeldia. Zidane might want to continue that trend while choosing his lineup.

4-3-3 is Zidane’s most-used lineup during his tenure at Real Madrid. The BBC trident in attack and the Kroos-Casemiro-Modric trinity in midfield dominated the pitch for several seasons. With Ødegaard returning, Real Madrid could be heading into a similar phase.

As you can see, he will be a like-to-like replacement for the same role that Luka Modrić plays for Real Madrid – as a right-central midfielder in the midfield. Ødegaard played a similar role at Real Sociedad, functioning as the most advanced midfielder on the pitch, but also helping the team build from the back by dropping deep.

While Toni Kroos will funnel possession and be a calm presence in the middle third, Casemiro playing the role of a destroyer, sweeping possession and starting attacks, Ødegaard will be expected to wreak havoc using his elite ball-playing ability to break down defences and find players behind it.

As a right-winger

Martin Ødegaard is actually a very good player on the right-wing. He doesn’t necessarily have the pace to become a line-breaking winger, but he compensates for that with his dribbling and technical skills. He can easily fox a defender using an array of tricks. Whatever passes through his feet is pure magic. His flicks and turns are majestic, and he can certainly put those to good effect while functioning as a right-winger.

Since he is a predominantly left-footed player, he can cut in from the right (yes, in the most Robben-esque fashion) and use his wand of a left foot to good effect. His shooting is highly effective, although he isn’t known to have an eye for goal. He can also set his teammates up using his vision, while his link-up with the right-back has been impressive to watch.