Arsenal are expected to announce the signing of Martin Odegaard on a six-month loan in the coming days.

The Norwegian star has played only seven games at Real Madrid this season and has made it clear that he wants regular first-team football for the remainder of the campaign.

It was initially thought Odegaard would opt for a return to Real Sociedad, the club where he showcased his immense talent in 2019/20.

But he now appears to be on his way to north London and the deal could turn out to be an excellent one for the Gunners.

If he rediscovers his best form, Arsenal will have an elite-level playmaker to reduce the creative burden placed on Emile Smith Rowe in recent weeks.

What is more, the loan deal for Odegaard represents outstanding value.

According to Spanish outlet El Confidencial, per Mirror, Mikel Arteta's side will cover the Norwegian's salary in full, but he only pockets £38,000-a-week at Real Madrid.

For a club like Arsenal who have numerous players on more than £100,000-a-week, that's a bargain.

The north London outfit will also only pay a £2m loan fee for Odegaard. So even if the 22-year-old fails to live up to expectation, he won't have made a significant dent in the club's finances.

However, there's a significant chance the midfielder - who has 25 caps for the Norwegian national team - will be a hit at the Emirates Stadium.

He's supremely talented, so much so that Pep Guardiola believed he could turn him into "the best player in the world" while he was the manager of Bayern Munich.

“You have to bring that boy to Munich, you have to bring him to Munich! I will make him the best player in the world," Guardiola reportedly said, according to Jan Age Fjortoft on the Here We Go Podcast, per Goal.

Praise of the highest order from one of the greatest managers of all time.

So what will Odegaard bring to Arsenal if the deal is completed before deadline day? Well, Terry Gibson answered that question on Sky Sports' Transfer Talk podcast.

The Spanish football expert said: "He's an attacking midfield player - don't expect too much defensively! He's a player who can open up packed defences and he's a player who has the quality to play regularly for Real Madrid, he's that good.

"Would he suit Arsenal and the Premier League? I think he would. He's a really good player; I think he has the quality to play for any of the big clubs in the Premier League."

But while Gibson waxed lyrical about Odegaard's talent, he expressed his concern about the Nowrwegian's potential game time at Arsenal due to the emergence of Smith Rowe.

"Will Arsenal find a place on a weekly basis for Odegaard? I'm not sure they will because of the position he plays in," he added. "Smith Rowe has come into the team and is flying.

"Odegaard has to choose not the glamorous option but the place where he goes and plays 25, 30 games until the end of the season. I'm not sure if that will happen at Arsenal."