Arsenal put in a performance that stunned the Premier League on Sunday afternoon as they blew away table toppers Liverpool.
Mikel Arteta's men looked dominant from the first whistle and even scored the visitors' only goal when William Saliba and David Raya had a mix-up at the back.
The team's performance was so good that singling out one individual would be challenging, but an area of the pitch where the Gunners excelled was midfield.
The pair of Jorginho and Declan Rice have been deservedly getting plaudits for their display, but there was one player who was like a metronome in attack, a player whom Arsenal took a gamble on and is now worth a king's ransom.
Martin Odegaard's valuation before Arsenal
The player in question is Norwegian maestro and captain of Arsenal, Martin Odegaard.
The Drammen-born dynamo first caught the world's attention when he signed for Real Madrid in 2015 at just 16 years old for a fee believed to be in the region of £2m.
During his time as a Madrid player, the technically gifted midfielder would go on several loan spells to Heerenveen, Vitesse, Real Sociedad and finally to Arsenal.
During his loan spells prior to the one with the Gunners, he slowly built back his reputation, which was hurt by his ultimately failed move to Madrid.
He made 118 appearances across the three loan moves, scored 21 goals and provided 27 assists, meaning he was averaging 0.40 goal involvements per match, and while that might not sound outrageous, he was just 16 when he went to Heerenveen.
Appearances
43
39
36
Goals
3
11
7
Assists
5
13
9
Goal Involvements per Match
0.18
0.61
0.44
His final spell away from Los Blancos saw him move to north London for the second half of the 2020/21 season, and while his two goals and two assists in 20 appearances didn't look that impressive on paper, Arteta saw something in him, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Martin Odegaard's valuation in 2024
The loan move to the Emirates and the ones that came before did a great job at reminding the world just why so many were excited about his emergence back in 2015. So, when he signed for the club on a permanent deal in the summer of 2021, it cost a relatively respectable fee of £34m.
In the two and a half years since, however, his stock has gone through the roof, and in July 2022, he was named club captain, meaning that at just 23 years old, he was the skipper of one of the biggest clubs in the world and his national team – talk about responsibility.
His performances have also come on leaps and bounds from his showing in that initial loan spell, with the dynamic midfielder making 134 appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring 31 times and providing 19 goals.
Appearances
20
40
45
29
Goals
2
7
15
7
Assists
2
5
8
4
Goal Involvements per Match
0.20
0.30
0.51
0.37
That said, in the last year and a half, the "phenomenal" gem, as he was dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has truly developed into one of the league's premier midfielders, as he scored 15 goals, provided seven assists in 37 league starts last season, and has seven goal involvements to his name this campaign.
While he has yet to lift a major trophy in the red and white of Arsenal, he has helped guide the team back onto a path that, for now anyway, looks destined to end in glory.
So, with that said, it's hardly surprising that the CIES Football Observatory valued the Norwegian dynamo at around €150m, which is around £128m, or 3.7 times (276% more) what Arsenal paid for him in 2021.
Arsenal struck gold on Emery signing whose value has skyrocketed 1333%
The 22-year-old has become a star in N5.The 22-year-old has become a star in N5.
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It's hard to think of a better bit of business in the Premier League over the last few seasons, and excitingly for the Gunners, there's still a lot of room for him to develop.