Man who helped revive Martin Odegaard’s career recalls his ‘explosion’ of talent

“Patience. We believe that you need patience for talent. Talent is talent. Sometimes it explodes before, sometimes after.”

Roberto Olabe, Real Sociedad’s sporting director, is responsible for helping the club to three consecutive Europa League qualifications and the 2020 Copa del Rey title.

Everything he does is directly linked to Los Txuri-Urdin’s ‘game model’. In other words, Olabe’s role is to identify what the squad needs, who is ready to make the jump from the youth set-ups and any external players who can add the ‘missing’ ingredient.

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“But if you have talent Real Sociedad will always try to work to find that explosion,” he adds when asked by Daily Star Sport why he brought Martin Odegaard from Real Madrid to San Sebastian, setting the Norwegian on his current path to greatness.

Real Sociedad’s long and fruitful relationship with Real Madrid put them in the fortunate position of landing the midfielder on a season-long loan in the summer of 2019. A move away from the bright lights of the Santiago Bernabeu would allow the then-20-year-old the perfect conditions to grow, while Los Blancos kept a watchful eye on their wonderkid’s progress.

It didn’t take much for Olabe, who had studied Odegaard’s adaptation in Real Madrid Castilla (reserves) and his loan spell in Holland, to convince him to join. The young playmaker was searching for something he had not found in his three-and-a-half years at Real Madrid – a breakthrough.

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He found that and plenty more. A year-and-a-half after joining Real Sociedad, Mikel Arteta brought Odegaard to north London. The loan, midway through the 2020/21 campaign, was down to his dazzling performances for Real Sociedad the season before.

Some Arsenal fans raised an eyebrow at the decision due to their fear of having academy star Emile Smith Rowe’s place in the starting-11 snatched away, just as he had stamped his claim.

People again had doubts when the Gunners went in for Odegaard and signed him for £30million on a permanent basis the following summer, despite him enjoying a promising first few months in England which went under the radar.

It was widely perceived as a less sexy option than splashing £70m on Leicester’s James Maddison at the time. But Arteta was already certain of Odegaard’s qualities, as Olabe and others were long before the attacking-midfielder even stepped foot on the Anoeta Stadium turf.

“Martin perfectly understood the game. That was his most important attribute,” Olabe recalls. “It was his interpretation of the game and what was happening around him at every single moment.

“His capacity to interpret the game was and is higher than the individual qualities. Because he thinks quickly, he is able to adapt and get one step ahead of opponents that people think are physically quicker.

“It wasn’t just one specific quality like control, receptions, last pass, shooting or set-pieces. His box of attributes was already full, complete.” No small praise given Sociedad’s track record when it comes to producing talent.

Arteta’s Arsenal were far from the Premier League title-pursuing colossus of this season when Odegaard arrived on loan. The Spaniard’s side was in its infancy, a mish-mash of underperforming players inherited almost entirely from the Arsene Wenger, Unai Emery, Sven Mislintat and Raul Sanllehi eras before him.

Lack of quality and discipline were rampant, while a clear creative deficit prevented Arteta from instilling the ideas which have since come into full effect. But Odegaard’s arrival marked a seachange on both fronts.

Olabe’s assessment of Odegaard’s character best exemplifies that. “He had extraordinary values in a professional sense,” he said. “He was serious about hard work, being a team player and he had the right mentality to continually improve.

“He wanted to be more every single day. With youth players you usually needed to push that, but not with this guy.”

That kind of commitment, coming from a loanee in the harsh, cut-throat context of the Premier League, resonated with Arteta immediately. To those within Arsenal, Odegaard’s work ethic and example to teammates made him a dressing room leader even before his move to north London was made permanent.

It was the same leadership the Norwegian youngster had demonstrated during his spell in the Basque country, leaving few at the Spanish club surprised when he was officially named Arsenal captain in the summer of 2022.

Olabe said: “When a player, like Martin, has the perfect tools, of course they can become a captain. I could see [his development turning out like] this. We believed he would develop into this player.

“He is the full package in terms of attitude, quality, personality and values. These four pillars showed that he could do it.”

Odegaard’s monstrous start at Real Sociedad saw him named man of the match against Atletico Madrid and notch five goal involvements in 11 games, including a typical defence-splitting assist against Deportivo Alaves. He fended off the likes of Lionel Messi and claimed the La Liga Player of the Month award for September 2019.

But Odegaard soon had to rely on his grit again to get through some more tough times once his progress was derailed by a heel bone injury. The youngster cut a frustrated figure come mid-season, not because his goals and assists had dried up, but because he could no longer work and train hard every day.

“The problem was not his performance but a physical problem that didn’t allow him to work and train every day like usual,” Olabe explained.

“He was always ready to play even though he had pain. Sometimes you might need to rest and recover but his mentality was very hard. Until the last day, he was working to qualify for Europa League.”

After the pandemic brought the season to an abrupt halt, Odegaard continued to play his part both in the league and the cup, contributing to six goals in the latter. His graft ensured Europa League qualification and a place in the Copa del Rey final were secured by the time he was recalled to Real Madrid.

His impact was felt even after his departure as Sociedad beat Basque rivals Athletic Club to win the Copa del Rey after a year-long postponement.

Precisely that aspect of Odegaard’s drive and understanding of the club’s values, meshed with his technical brilliance and otherworldly intelligence, made him more than a loanee. It ensured he remained long in the memory at San Sebastian.

Even now, Olabe maintains close contact with the Gunners skipper. And he has no doubt that the much-adored former prospect has the full support of the Basque city as he looks to lift the Premier League trophy at the end of this season.

“I think everyone in San Sebastian right now is watching what he is doing at Arsenal,” he said. “Everybody is happy when he wears the captain’s armband for Arsenal. Everybody is happy when he’s [named November and December] Player of the Month in the Premier League.

“He was our player and everyone understood at the time that this guy is born-Real Sociedad. His impact with our fans in just one season was amazing. People felt this guy is what they wanted to see from a player.

“Mikel was our player too, our friend, and we are happy knowing these good people are achieving good things.”

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