Martin Odegaard is back in Norway a decade on from his incredible debut and as skipper of Arsenal

Some of the finer details have become blurred in Martin Strange’s memory, but even ten years later he can still trace the course of a 2012 friendly and why it was important to Norwegian side Mjondalen.

“We beat Stromsgodset 5-2, which was a big deal for us at the time,” Strange recalls. “We were in the second level and they were local opposition.”

Arch rivals, actually. And while there were a few regulars missing on both sides, Stromsgodset was still a top head.

“But that wasn’t the headline, of course,” Strange explains. ‘Most attention went to a 13-year-old player from Stroms-godset. Which is understandable.’

Nowadays Strange rents out heavy machinery to entrepreneurs. That June afternoon near Drammen he had to deal with something smaller. But still worth a few bumps. “We were leading 4-0 at halftime,” Strange remembers. He played left back and after the break Stromsgodset sent in a new right winger: Martin Odegaard.

It was the 13-year-old’s senior debut, a club record. He scored his first goal after 25 minutes.

Within three years, Odegaard was on his way to Real Madrid. Now, ten years later, the 23-year-old returns to Norway as Arsenal captain, who will face Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League.

‘I remember it well’, he says about that debut. ‘I was a child. I feel young today and it’s been 10 years now. I was a kid. It was a good time. I played football, had fun, I just liked doing what I love to do.’

“I didn’t think at the time – that it would be a historic event,” admits Bjorn Petter Ingebretsen, who was then assistant coach of Stromsgodset. “But we ran into problems with the federation after the game – he was too young to play – so that made it a historic event!”

Stromsgodset knew they were breaking the rules. ‘But we took the risk and got a warning,’ says Ingebretsen. The previous night, Odegaard had trouble sleeping after hearing he was allowed to play. His selection was also a surprise for Mjondalen. But they were well prepared – Odegaard’s father, Hans Erik, was Mjondalen’s assistant coach and the player had trained with them.

During halftime, Ingebretsen and manager Ronny Deila – later Celtic boss – gave the 13-year-old his final tips. “Be Martin,” they told him. “And be careful with your legs!”

Yes, it was a friendly one. But Mjondalen was a physical side. “There was nothing they didn’t try to take the ball from him,” says Ingebretsen.

Strange insists he went the other way. “I was quite careful,” he recalls. “I didn’t want to hurt him.” With good reason. “He was only 13 and his father was the assistant coach. It wasn’t the headline you wanted!’

Fortunately, Odegaard did the most damage by feeding Peter Kovacs who fouled in the area before scoring a penalty. ‘A very good pass’, the teenager reflected after the game.

Strange adds: “He did what he does today, he cut in and gave the assist to one of the strikers.”

A Mjondalen employee claims the left-back tried to give Odegaard advice on the pitch. Strange can’t remember. “He didn’t need any instructions,” he says.

The technical ability, the ability to spot a pass… it was all there, even then. “You can see it today — if the defender runs too hard on Martin,” Strange says, “he just tucks the ball, puts the ball in and you’re out.”

That explains why the left-back took safety-first. Partly. “You were also a little afraid of being dribbled past by a 13-year-old,” he admits. No wonder then Mjondalen’s captain, Christian Gauseth, doesn’t mind missing the game. Even if it cost him a place in history. “No regrets at all,” he laughs. “I’m glad I didn’t have to be ashamed of a schoolboy.”

The midfielder had seen enough in training, when Odegaard often joined in after school, and his session at Stromsgodset.

Hans Erik, who had drilled his son every day from the age of five, demanded more from Martin than anyone else. Odegaard’s remarkable work ethic has stuck with those he trained with and among whom.

“He had the ability to see what was around him, and that was just unheard of,” says Gauseth. “At our level, I’m sure it felt like everything was going in slow motion for him.”

One moment remains etched in the midfielder’s psyche. Gauseth pressed the youngster from behind before receiving the ball. Odegaard went one way, then the other. “I was long gone to get hot dogs in the stands,” Gauseth jokes. Hans Erik wanted players to show his son the physical reality of senior games.

“He received his training in Viking football,” says Gauseth. “Special measures had to be taken to contain Martin, but I don’t think he sustained any lasting damage. So mission accomplished.’

Odegaard also came through his debut unscathed. So why didn’t Strange grab his shirt?

“I should have done that,” he says. “But I probably would have gotten a message from the kitman to return it.

“I’d be sitting on something if I’d asked…I don’t think he’d appreciate my shirt as much!”

Still, it was a rare opportunity. That debut proved to be a false start to Odegaard’s senior career – after the union warning, the midfielder did not play again until after his 15th birthday.

After that first outing, Odegaard went home to watch Euro 2012.

This week he returned to Norway via the absolute pinnacle of world football. Yet, somehow, only 23. And still applying lessons from those early days?

“He played the ball too much backwards and I wanted him to make more forward passes,” says Ingebretsen, before closing with a joke. “I taught him that.”

Teen sensation: Odegaard, then 15, playing for Stromsgodset in Norway rex

“I didn’t want to hurt him…his father was our assistant!”