Fabrizio Romano reveals clause in Martin Odegaard's Arsenal contract as club plan talks over future

Martin Odegaard has a significant clause contained within his current Arsenal contract, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Norwegian playmaker, who is Arsenal's club captain, joined the Gunners on a permanent deal from Real Madrid in August 2021 after spending the second half of the previous season on loan at the Emirates Stadium.

He has since established himself as one of the club's key players, and has 15 goals to his name in the Premier League this season.

His leadership skills have also been praised by manager Mikel Arteta, who said earlier in May (quotes via BBC Sport): "He has a character that everybody respects, everybody admires and everybody follows.

"He does it in his own way. There are many ways to lead a team and he has a unique one. We don't want to take anything from that. We are really happy he represents the club in the way he does."

Following team-mate Bukayo Saka's new four-year contract, which was announced on Tuesday afternoon, attention has turned to other players in the squad, such as Odegaard and William Saliba, who have not signed contract extensions this season.

Saliba's deal is due to expire next summer, with talks ongoing over an extension.

Odegaard, meanwhile, has a deal until the summer of 2025 - and Romano has revealed a contract clause which works in the club's favour.

Romano reveals Odegaard clause

Taking to Twitter, Romano confirmed that while the Norwegian does have an optional extension contained within his existing deal, Arsenal are planning to open talks over improved terms.

He tweeted: "Arsenal have a one-year contract extension clause in Martin Odegaard's deal.

"The club could choose to trigger it to keep him at the club until 2026, but they are hoping to tie him down to an improved long-term deal instead. Odegaard loves the club and Arsenal want Martin to be part of their long-term project.

This follows a report from The Athletic in October, which claimed that Arsenal had extension options on a number of existing players - but that they were keen to reward performances.

They have done just that with Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Aaron Ramsdale, with the trio signing improved contracts at different stages of the season.

Saka becomes the latest star to commit his future to the Emirates Stadium with Tuesday's announcement - and the Gunners will hope that Odegaard can agree terms shortly upon the completion of talks.