MARTIN ODEGAARD came second in a half-time Man of the Match poll for his Arsenal debut against Manchester United – despite not even playing.
The new Gunners loanee, 22, was glued to the bench for the opening 45 minutes of the tense clash at the Emirates.
But that didn’t stop Norwegian telly viewers from flocking to name Odegaard player of the half.
At the midway point, the Real Madrid ace had racked up 26 per cent of the fan vote for Man of the Match among TV 2 viewers.
Only United maestro Bruno Fernandes with 36 per cent came higher.
Incredibly, as the game wore on, Odegaard began to pick up more and more of the vote.
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After 75 minutes, and still on the bench, the loanee had rocketed to 41 per cent of fans’ votes – the highest of any player.
Odegaard did eventually have his number called by Mikel Arteta.
With 83 minutes gone, the Norway ace replaced Emile Smith Rowe with the match evenly poised at 0-0.
However, Odegaard was unable to help Arsenal break the deadlock and the spoils were shared at the Emirates.
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Odegaard did eventually have his number called by Mikel ArtetaCredit: AFP
Odegaard was sent on after 83 minutes but failed to help Arsenal break the deadlockCredit: AFP
The hilarious poll was shared to Twitter by Arilas Ould-Saada.
At half-time – and with Odegaard second in the voting – the Norwegian journalist tweeted: “TV 2 Norway’s viewers voting for man of the match at half time.
“We’re totally objective over here…”
After 75 minutes and with Odegaard now in the lead, he added: “75 minutes. Nope, still not playing.
“He’s absolutely aced his warmup though. World class.”
Martin Odegaard joins Arsenal in loan transfer as Mikel Arteta lands Real Madrid whizkid
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
