Arsenal star Martin Odegaard must have been feeling on top of the world when he and his stunning girlfriend announced they were expecting their first baby a fortnight ago.
The lynchpin of the Gunners’ Premier League title challenges for the last two seasons running could not have looked more loved up in an adorable beach snap, posted just days after helping his side to a huge win away at Aston Villa, following a victory on the opening day against Wolves.
But fast forward two weeks – in the wake of a disappointing home draw with Brighton – and his season has been thrown into turmoil with an ankle injury while playing for Norway. It comes ahead of two massive games for Arsenal, first away at Tottenham in the North London Derby on Sunday and then a daunting trip to face title rivals Manchester City on September 22.
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The midfield maestro, 25, hit the deck and let out a scream of agony during a 2-1 victory over Austria, before he was carried off the pitch in tears in Ullevaal. And he wasn’t the only one crying, as his partner Helene Spilling, 28, who was watching in the stands, also appeared visibly distressed as her man was tended to by medical staff.
The Norwegian couple have been dating since the beginning of 2023. She accompanied Odegaard to the London Football Awards in March that year, when he was named the Premier League Player of the Year, before their first public sighting when they were snapped together walking around London and heading out to a Japanese restaurant.
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Spilling is best known for appearing as one of the professional dancers on Skal vi Danse, the Norwegian version of Strictly Come Dancing, and even won the competition in 2021. During her competitive dancing career, she won the Norwegian dance championship 17 times, and represented Norway in European and world tournaments.
Spilling is the founder and owner of The Zone Dance Studio in Oslo, where Skal vi danse contestants train and practice. The businesswoman also has a sportswear brand, DAVAY, along with being a brand ambassador for Thune, one of Norway’s leading jewellery brands, and working as a wedding videographer in her spare time.
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The blonde beauty currently has 176,000 followers on Instagram, where she shares dancing videos and snaps from her life. She and former Real Madrid star Odegaard became Instagram-official after she embraced him on the pitch at the end of the 2023/24. They then shared photos of them together in the tunnel at the Emirates, and followed that up with snaps of them sunbathing together on holiday.
Their romance has only continued to grow, with Spilling posting a series of images of them cuddling a new puppy in February, plus a couple of solo shots of Odegaard holding the dog and sitting on a bike in a park. And while Arsenal narrowly missed out on the title again in May, his girlfriend posted pictures of her and team-mate Kai Havertz’s gorgeous wife Sophia cheering them on, telling the world: “Proud of you.”
Earlier in the summer, Spilling was snapped out walking in the capital with Odegaard, wearing what appeared to be an engagement ring, sparking rumours of a wedding in the near future. Then at the end of August the Gunners captain – who earns more than £300,000-a-week – revealed he and Spilling were expecting a child in a post on social media, which was captioned: “Can’t wait to meet you, our little baby.”
The Instagram post showed off Spilling’s bump as the couple embraced for a photograph by the sea. And while nothing could take away from the joy of their impending arrival, Odegaard and Spilling now face an anxious wait as doctors determine the extent of his ankle injury.
(Image: Getty Images)
It came following a challenge from Austria’s Christoph Baumgartner in the 67th minute, which saw Odegaard’s foot stick in the turf. Team-mates gathered around the stricken star before he made an early exit and headed straight to the treatment table.
Norway manager Stale Solbakken is bracing himself for some stern words from Gunners boss Mikel Arteta, as he confessed in a post-match press conference: “It looked bad in the dressing room too. He didn’t have the nerve to continue. It is not certain that Arteta will call me tonight and praise me.”
Norway’s medical chief Ola Sand said the extent of the injury was not yet clear. He told TV2: “He got a small ankle sprain. We will see, maybe we use ultrasound to look at it. If we are unsure, there will be an MRI tomorrow.”