Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard is in talks to extend his contract at the club, in a huge boost for the club.

That’s according to journalist Charles Watts, who has claimed that the 24-year-old is the next priority for the Club regarding a new contract, having already extended the deals of Aaron Ramsdale, Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Magalhaes, Bukayo Saka and William Saliba in the last 12 months.

“They are looking to get that done, to push forward with those discussions at the moment,” Watts told TeamTalk.

“And my understanding is that talks have been taking place fairly recently to try to get the deal to a stage where it can be done.”

Odegaard’s increasing influence

There were some doubts about the Norway captain when he made his loan move from Real Madrid permanent two years ago, but those doubts were quickly squashed.

The ideal addition to a midfield which at the time was severely lacking in creativity, Odegaard has gone from strength to strength, scoring 15 league goals in his first season as club captain, and is now one of the first names on the team sheet.

His contract runs out in 2025, although Arsenal have an option to extend, but they clearly want to tie him down on a longer deal now to send a signal that he is going nowhere.

Jamie Carragher described him as “brilliant” last season, and he has established himself as one of the best midfielders in the Premier League.

Odegaard failed to make the grade at Real Madrid despite an impressive loan spell at Real Sociedad, but Arsenal took full advantage of Zinedine Zidane’s lack of trust in him.

The midfielder made his Real Madrid debut at the age of 15, after famously being tracked by most of Europe’s biggest clubs, and one of the world’s best wonderkids is now living up to his potential, and Arsenal are now set to secure him for the long-term future.

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