Arsenal struck gold on sensational "wizard" worth more than Nelson & Nketiah combined - opinion

There are less than two weeks remaining of the summer transfer window and, as things stand, it feels like Arsenal still have a lot to do.

Mikel Arteta has only welcomed one new face to the first team in Riccardo Calafiori thus far, although recent reports indicate that Mikel Merino should be joining the team very soon.

It's not just incomings that need to be sorted out before the window closes, though, as both Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson continue to be touted for an exit, although the links for the former are far more robust at present.

Eddie-Nketiah-arsenal-premier-league
The two Hale Enders have been on the team's periphery for some time now, although it does look like the club could make a significant amount of money on their sales. However, even when combined, their fees won't even come close to the valuation of one of Arteta's best signings in North London.

The latest on Nketiah and Nelson
It's been a wild couple of weeks for Nketiah, as it looked like he would be joining Roberto de Zerbi at Marseille just a week ago, only for Arsenal to turn down their final offer, which amounted to around £25m.

Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah
Since that move fell apart, Nottingham Forest have emerged as the team that look most likely to sign the Englishman, with The Athletic's David Ornstein reporting on Monday that the Gunners had also turned down their offer of around £25m including add-ons.

However, Ornstein has claimed that negotiations are ongoing between the two sides, with the Gunners sticking to their valuation of between £30m and £35m for the striker.

Nketiah-Elneny
Now, when it comes to Nelson, things are a little less clear beyond the fact that the North Londoners are looking to sell him this summer.

At the moment, it looks like Leicester City have maintained their interest in him, but according to the Telegraph, his wages are currently proving to be a stumbling block.

reiss-nelson-arsenal-contract
If he were to be sold, it would likely be for his £20m valuation, meaning that if the Gunners were able to get exactly what they wanted for the two attackers, they would earn a cool £55m, and while that's a lot of money, it pales in comparison to the valuation of one of Arteta's best signings to date.

Martin Odegaard's valuation in 2024
The signing in question is Martin Odegaard, who completed his £34m move to the club in the summer of 2021 after impressing on loan six months prior.

martin-odegaard-arsenal-community-shield
Since then, he has only gone from strength to strength and now, according to the CIES Football Observatory, is worth up to a staggering €117m, which converts to about £100m, or at least £45m more than the combined valuations of Nketiah and Nelson.

It's an entirely justified valuation as well because, alongside his incredible skill and ability, he's become a real leader on the pitch, earning the captain's armband just a year after signing.

Odegaard's Arsenal career

Appearances

154

Goals

35

Assists

25

Goal Involvements per Match

0.38

All Stats via Transfermarkt

Moreover, in his 154 appearances for the North Londoners, he's scored 35 goals and provided 25 assists, meaning he has averaged a goal involvement once every 2.56 games since making the move four years ago.

It's not just his output that is impressive either, as according to FBref, which compares players in similar positions across Europe's top five leagues, the Champions League and the Europa League, the Norwegian "wizard", as dubbed by footballer Babayele Sodade, sits in the top 1% of midfielders for shot-creating actions and touches in the opposition penalty area, the top 2% for progressive passes, the top 3% for non-penalty expected goals plus expected assists and the top 4% for actual assists and total shots, all per 90.

Ultimately, Arteta has made several brilliant signings during his time at Arsenal, but Odegaard might be his very best, and the fact that he is worth so much more than two other players combined helps prove that fact.

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