MADRID – Martin Odegaard wants to leave Real Madrid because he feels he doesn’t have enough minutes to monitor his progress, several sources have confirmed to ESPN.
The midfielder started the first two La Liga games, but has barely counted for Zinedine Zidane since then and has not been selected for the Copa del Rey match against Alcoyano.
The young Norwegian talent was picked up by the white club last summer despite spending a second season on loan at Real Sociedad.
Initially, and given the club’s inability to sign autographs due to the economic situation following COVID-19, Real Madrid opted for Odegaard’s return after being one of last season’s revelations, scoring and contributing 7 goals . 9 assists in 36 games with Real Sociedad.
However, the 22-year-old has only played 7 league games and 2 in the Champions League since returning to the White House and has decided it is best to go out again to avoid interrupting his progression.
The club understands the player’s desire and several sources acknowledge to ESPN that it is highly likely that he will be loaned to another team before the market closes.
Real Sociedad themselves are alert to the situation, while the same sources question the difficulties Zidane has in developing the club’s own internal talent, either because of the player’s immediate performance or because of the coach’s lack of conviction.
However, Odegaard is just one of the many footballers who are being called up to do great things in Madrid but are asking for his departure due to the lack of opportunities.
Marcos Llorente, for example, had to leave Madrid because the coach never had him and is now one of the big stars of Atlético de Madrid. Something similar happened with Sergio Reguilón, who, after being one of the best fullbacks in the last competition in Seville, ended up with José Mourinho at Tottenham Hotspur. Or even Achraf Hakimi, who, after overcoming the initial slump in adjusting to Serie A, also stars under Antonio Conte at Inter Milan.
Zidane himself came up against the criticism publicly on Tuesday, hours before it was announced that Odegaard also wants to leave the club.
Blaming me is easy. It’s Real Madrid, it’s very complicated. There is a time when the player has to play and demonstrate. The fault is not with the coach. The players have to demonstrate, ”said Zidane about the departure of the said players.
The most immediate case was that of Luka Jovic. The Serbian returned to Eintracht Frankfurt on loan until June 30, after a year and a half without shining in Madrid, scoring two goals in just half an hour in his re-debut.
“Luka is 21 years old and he is a very good option. He is very good and he will certainly do well at Real Madrid. He has a great future to show the player that he is with Real Madrid. There is always very strong competition here ”, Zidane apologized for the poor performance of the Serbian who just scored two goals with the white jersey, the same one he already has in his new adventure.
From around the Santiago Bernabéu, Fede Valverde’s repeated substitutions, Mariano’s lack of minutes or even why Brahim is surprising in AC Milan and not Concha Espina are not explained.