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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta believes the attention thrust upon Martin Odegaard as a teenager has made the midfielder better prepared for this stage of his career.

Odegaard, who made a permanent move to Arsenal in August after impressing on loan last season, moved to Real Madrid when he was just 16. At the time, he was already a full international, having broken a 104-year record to become Norway's youngest ever player.

Things didn't always go swimmingly for the starlet in Spain, and he was sent on loan a number of times before eventually leaving the Bernabeu in a permanent deal worth a reported £30m. However, as the 23-year-old continues to prove doubters wrong, Arteta has pointed to the positive impact of that early-career pressure.

“Before the criticism, it was the price," Arteta told TV2 (via Sport Witness ). "And the price was so high, so early, without doing anything special.

"They set the list for him at a level he could not even see, because he did not get the opportunity to play. It was impossible for him to close that gap

“He had to accept many things: Not to play, to be out of the team, to be criticised. But it’s part of a player’s development.

"It makes your skin