It's been a wild ride for Arsenal fans over the last few years, as they have seen their side go from mid-table mediocrity to consistent title challengers under the leadership of Mikel Arteta.
The former captain of the club has been transformational in the dugout, and so have a number of his signings, be that Gabriel at the back, Leandro Trossard on the wing or even Kai Havertz up top.
However, perhaps no addition has been quite as emblematic of the Gunners' shift from also-rans to serious contenders as the signing of Martin Odegaard.
The Norwegian joined the club as a former wonderkid with plenty to prove and has become one of the most important players in the Premier League, and yet there is another Arsenal star who is worth even more than him.
Odegaard's valuation in 2024
Following a reasonably successful, if not slightly underwhelming, loan spell in the latter half of the 20/21 campaign, the Gunners decided to sign Odegaard in August 2021 for a fee that is likely to hit £34m with add-ons and to say that the move has been a success since would be quite the understatement.
For example, in his 156 appearances for the club, the Norwegian "wizard," as dubbed by former footballer Babayele Sodade, has scored 35 goals and provided 25 assists, equating to an average of a goal involvement every 2.60 games.
Moreover, he's been improving seemingly year-on-year, so who knows how many goal involvements he'll be able to rack up this season, should the injury he picked up on Monday night not be too serious.
Appearances
20
40
45
48
Goals
2
7
15
11
Assists
2
5
7
11
Goal Involvements per Match
0.20
0.30
0.48
0.45
However, it's not just his raw output that makes him such a spectacular player to watch. He's also proven himself to be a fantastic leader, as despite being just 23 years old at the time, he was named club captain in July 2022, just a year and a half after being named Norway captain as well.
In all, the former Real Madrid ace has transformed from a youngster with plenty of potential into an incredibly gifted leader who also happens to be one of the most technically gifted midfielders in England.
So, with all that said, it shouldn't come as a surprise that his valuation has shot up in recent years. According to Transfermarkt, he is now worth a whopping €110m, which is about £93m.
While that's an enormous sum of money, it's still lower than the valuation of one of his teammates.
Declan Rice's valuation in 2024
Yes, the star in question is Arsenal's £105m man, Declan Rice, whom Transfermarkt currently values at a massive €120m, which converts to about £101m, and while that is slightly less than the fee the Gunners paid for him, it's still a ringing endorsement to see him even get close a year later.
Moreover, while this sort of valuation isn't all that unusual for world-class attacking players today, there are very few defensive midfielders who are valued as highly, bar perhaps Rodri, whom Transfermarkt prices at €130m, or £110m.
That said, while it's an enormous valuation, it would be hard to argue that it isn't justified, as the former West Ham United captain was one of Arsenal's best and most consistent players last season.
For example, across all competitions, the "phenomenal" midfielder, as dubbed by respected analyst EBL, made 51 appearances for Arteta, in which he scored seven goals and provided ten assists, equating to a goal involvement on average every three games, which is a frankly ludicrous level of output for a player who started 31 games as a six, 19 as an eight and one as a centre-back.
Another massive benefit to having the England international in the team is that, despite playing consistent first-team football from such a young age, he has a remarkably clean bill of health and, as things stand, has only missed seven games across his entire career due to injury.
Ultimately, Arsenal are incredibly fortunate to have Odegaard and Rice in the team, and while they have yet to win anything in North London, it feels more like a matter of when and not if with them at the heart of the midfield.
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