Arsenal have completed the signing of Martin Odegaard from Real Madrid on a long-term contract for a fee believed to be in the region of €35million (£30million).
Odegaard will wear the No. 8 shirt for Arsenal this season, a number that has been vacant since former loanee Dani Ceballos departed the club at the end of June.
Arsenal icons Aaron Ramsey, Samri Nasri and even current manager Mikel Arteta have previously donned the iconic number for the north Londoners.
The 22-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan with Arteta's side, featuring 20 times across all competitions, providing two goals and two assists in that time as left a long-lasting impression on the Spaniard.
During his first stint at the Emirates Stadium, Odegaard wore the no.11 jersey after previous owner Lucas Torreira spent the season on loan with La Liga outfit Atletico Madrid.
Upon arriving for a second managerial stint at the Bernabeu, Los Blancos' boss Carlo Ancelotti stated that he was a huge admirer of the Norwegian international, making a return to the Emirates seem unlikely for Odegaard.
However, the diminutive playmaker was left out for his former side's La Liga opener against Alaves before he decided that a change was needed in the hunt for regular game time.
As first revealed by football.london back in May, Arsenal technical director Edu has been desperate to bring in a creative No.10 all summer and Odegaard is just that, registering 3.54 open-play shot-creating actions per 90 minutes last season as no other Arsenal player scored more than 2.7 last term.
Before his short stint in north London earlier this year, the talented midfielder spent fruitful loan spells with Dutch sides Heerenves and Vitesse, as well as Spanish outfit Real Sociedad, before sealing his permanent switch to the Gunners on a long-term contract.
