Real Madrid midfielder Martin Odegaard is in his first full season at the club as a first-team squad member but his career could have ended up very different.
That is according to former Norway international and current journalist Jan Age Fjørtoft, who has claimed that current Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola – then at Bayern Munich – wanted to sign him before his move to Spain, and he was under the impression he could turn Odegaard into the world’s best player.
Fjørtoft told Italian football journalist Fabrizio Romano on the Here We Go podcast, as quoted by Diario AS: “You have to bring that boy (Odegaard) to Munich, you have to bring him to Munich! I will make him the best player in the world!”
Odegaard was just 14 at the time and eventually moved to Madrid, a move which Fjørtoft attempted to explain: “As you know, Liverpool was his favourite club, it was his favourite club as a child. I still think that the reason why he ended up at Real Madrid was quite simple, in my opinion.
“First of all, Real Madrid had a second team, the other three clubs did not. The second team (Castilla) coach was Zinedine Zidane. He is not a bad player, he is not a bad coach!”
Odegaard’s return to Madrid following a season on loan at Real Sociedad was confirmed back in August and the Norwegian is set to challenge for a regular starting slot in Zidane’s side this season
Odegaard netted seven goals for La Real last season and was the only major player to join the first-team squad at Los Blancos this summer.
