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It was recently announced that Norwegian international and
future Football Manager wonderkid Martin Odegaard was to sign for reigning
European Champions Real Madrid. Put that into context: a year 11 has just
signed for the biggest club in the world and will earn £80,000 a week. Meanwhile
in the real world, I’ve been known to make cream cheese and peanut sandwiches*,
and I’m praying that universities remember that I exist. Am I bitter?
Only slightly.
Practically the whole of Europe was chasing after the
teenager’s signature. Name a top 4 team in any of Europe’s top leagues and they
will most likely have been linked with Odegaard. It is no surprise that he
chose Real Madrid. Who wouldn’t? However
I would seriously question whether this is the best move for Odegaard at this
stage of his fledgling career.
Unless Odegaard is Messi reincarnated, he is not walking
straight into the first team. The issue is that Real don’t have the greatest
track record of bringing through young players – they didn’t earn the name
Galacticos for having a fantastic academy. Admittedly I haven’t seen much of
the youngster. All I have to go on are the YouTube videos that inevitably
surface when a young talent is discovered. From what I gather he’s a tricky
attacking midfielder – the type of player Real Madrid are in short supply of.
Apart from Ronaldo. And Bale. That James Rodriguez lad looks decent too. Isco
isn't bad either I guess. Oh and Jese Rodriguez. Only one of those players came
through the academy, but as Alvaro Morata found out in the summer it may be
hard to stay there. Odegaard has just signed for the same Real Madrid team that
felt the need to sell the likes of Mesut Ozil, Angel di Maria and Xabi Alonso
because they could go out and buy more expensive, ready-made replacements.
That’s the problem with mega rich teams, hence why you’re unlikely to see an
academy graduate from the likes of Man City, and why Chelsea haven’t produced a
player since John Terry.
Ajax seem like they would have been the perfect destination
for Odegaard. Firstly the Dutch league is an ideal breeding ground for young
players. The standard of football isn’t too high so that a player looks out of
his depth, but not low enough to halt a player’s development. This is the
league where the likes of Wesley Sneijder and Luis Suarez honed their skills.
Secondly the Ajax academy is fantastic. Recent graduates include Christian
Eriksen, Daley Blind, Toby Alderweireld and Jan Verthongen. It’s hard to
imagine Odegaard going there and not becoming a better player. What would it
hurt developing at a lesser European team before making a major move?
At the end of the day, Martin Odegaard can do whatever he
wants. He could buy my house and evict me just for shits and giggles. Who
knows? I could be totally wrong and he
could end up being a star at the Bernebeu in the near future.
*Do not try this at home. It was 1 in the morning and I was
a tired, hungry fool. Please learn from my mistake.
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