Martin Odegaard is only two months into his loan spell at Arsenal but signing the Norwegian permanently at the end of the season already seems to be the club's number on transfer priority.
The Real Madrid loanee built on goal scoring performances in victories against Olympiacos and Tottenham with another standout display against West Ham where he created more chances and covered more distance than any other Gunners player on the pitch.
Speaking after that match, Mikel Arteta admitted that he is really impressed with he was seen from the 22-year-old so far.
"The way he steps on the pitch, he always wants the ball, the way he commands the pressing," said the Spaniard.
"He’s been really influential. I think we’ve all been a bit surprised because he looks really shy and humble, but when he steps on that pitch he’s a real character and he loves to play football."
For his part Odegaard seems to have indicated that he is open to the idea of a permanent move the Emirates after failing to get much of a look in under Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid.
"My future at Arsenal? The deal with Arsenal is until the end of season," he said at a Norway press conference this week. "We'll see what happens this summer.
"I've said things before that I still stand for: stability and development are key words."
However, one thing that may prove a stumbling block to a potential deal is the Arsenal's limited finances.
The Gunners announced a loss of £47.8m earlier this month, and money is expected to be tight around the Emirates going into the summer.
With each impressive performance it is likely that Odegaard's price tag goes up, thus making the deal unaffordable.
However, Mikel Arteta's side may have been handed an unlikely lifeline in their pursuit of the Norwegian by none other than their fierce rivals' winger Gareth Bale.
Bale is currently on loan with Spurs from Real Madrid for this season and announced this week that his intention is to return to the Spanish champions when that deal comes to an end this summer.
“I think the main reason I came to Spurs this year was to play football first and foremost," he said in a press conference while on international duty with Wales.
“Going into the Euros I wanted to be match-fit. The original plan was to do a season at Spurs and after the Euros still have a year left at Real Madrid.
“My plan is to go back, that’s as far I have planned.”
The 31-year-old is reportedly earning £600,000 per week on his current deal at Madrid which equates roughly to £18.2 million a year.
Real are a club known for their love of spending big on transfers and are expected to do so again this summer with the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland being touted as the next potential 'Galaticos'.
However, funding moves for those types of players is likely to become incredibly difficult while they have the financial albatross of Bale's wages weighing heavy around their necks.
This will mean they are far more likely to want to sell players like Odegaard who are not currently in Zidane's first team plans, which in turn could drive the Norwegian's price down making a deal far more manageable for Arsenal.
It remains to be seen whether Bale who is reportedly having half of his wages paid for by Spurs, will end up going back to Real Madrid at the end of the season.
But if he does the irony of one of Tottenham's most beloved players inadvertently helping Arsenal to secure their top summer transfer target will not be lost on most of the Gunners fans.
