This was a very special game for Martin Ødegaard. The Arsenal captain was to lead his club against the coach who had no faith in the Norwegian’s potential and capacity – for two rounds as Real Madrid coach. On Tuesday, one of the world’s best coaches had to go down to the locker room with a 3-0 victory to the opponent, led by the same Ødegaard.
We rewind to be reminded of what Ancelotti thought of Ødegaard, then also as Real Madrid coach. In Ancelotti’s book “Quite Leadership”, the Italian writes: “When Florentino buys a Norwegian footballer, you simply have to accept it. Furthermore, the president decided that Ødegaard should play three games with the first team as a PR exercise. He could be the best player in the world, but I didn’t care because he wasn’t a player I asked for. That signing was about PR,” Anclotti wrote.
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So when Ancelotti returned as Real coach in 2021, it was no surprise that Real Madrid sold Ødegaard to Arsenal for £30 million. Ancelotti stated he had eight players in midfield ahead of Ødegaard in the playing time queue.
On Tuesday, Ødegaard led Arsenal to an impressive 3-0 victory against Real Madrid in the first CL quarter-final. Arsenal supporters have thanked and bowed for Real Madrid releasing Ødegaard for the past two years, calling the signing “the big steal”. This was confirmed again on Tuesday.
It was for you, Ancelotti!
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