Ethan Nwaneri should look close to home if he needs advice during his troubled Marseille loan spell
Mark Whiley Sports Reporter
11:22, 12 Feb 2026
Ethan Nwaneri
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Ethan Nwaneri's loan spell at Marseille hasn't gone to plan so far(Image: Getty Images)
If Ethan Nwaneri wants any inspiration following a troubled start to his Marseille loan spell, he needs to look no further than Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard.
The 18-year-old joined the French giants last month in a bid to secure the first-team football he had been lacking under Mikel Arteta. The move started well enough with a goal in a victorious debut against Lens.
However, matters have since deteriorated rapidly for Nwaneri, who was hauled off at half-time in successive games against Rennes in the French Cup and then during a 5-0 defeat at Paris Saint-Germain, which proved to be manager Roberto De Zerbi's last in charge.
Nwaneri had joined a squad where relations between the existing players and manager De Zerbi were strained. According to reports in France, many players weren't happy with the manager's coaching methods and strictness.
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Player power, it seems, won the day as the Italian left the club by mutual consent earlier this week. Former Marseille and Newcastle defender Habib Beye is the favourite to succeed him.
Where that leaves Nwaneri is unclear. But if nothing else, it will be a character-building experience for the youngster, much like Odegaard's loan spells during his time at Real Madrid. There was huge expectation on the Norwegian's shoulders when he was snapped up by Real at the age of just 16, and he endured some tough moments.
Then-manager Carlo Ancelotti has since openly admitted he had little interest in the teenager's arrival. He was more focused on established players who could secure immediate results than on those for the future, like Odegaard.
Ethan Nwaneri
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All is not well behind the scenes at Nwaneri's new club(Image: Getty Images)
Odegaard had five separate loan spells and while the final one at Arsenal was obviously hugely successful, his early stints away from Madrid didn't go according to plan. His first of two stints at Heerenveen in the Netherlands didn't start well.
After joining in January 2017, he struggled to make an impact in his first half-season at the club. Still, having lobbied for the move himself, he battled to make a success of his stay in the Netherlands, which then featured a stint at Vitesse Arnhem.
Speaking in the summer of 2017, he told Norwegian TV: "It was my decision, but Real Madrid made all the arrangements for it to happen. It was my choice, because I wanted to play more.
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"It was important for me to be playing at the top level. If I hadn't done it, I would have stayed in Madrid, where the daily training sessions were the best part for me. At the end of the season, it was agreed that I should stay another year here [at Heerenveen].
"I feel like I've made the right decision. I've joined a club which suits me, has a great history and promotes the development of young players."
Given that Odegaard was something of a mentor to Nwaneri, those words should chime with the youngster as he looks to make his mark in France in difficult circumstances.
Real Madrid's Norwegian midfielder Martin Odegaard warm up before the Spanish League 2014/15 match between Real Madrid and Almeria, at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium
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Martin Odegaard had some difficult loan spells during his time at Real Madrid(Image: NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Odegaard's manager at Stromsgodset has highlighted the importance of those early loan spells, even if they were tough for the player. He told Sky Sports last year: "What you have to remember is that even those loan spells were not that successful in the beginning, and he was struggling in the national team too.
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"So that was another knock. He's a Real Madrid player, he goes on loan to Holland, it doesn't go as planned, twice, and it's only the third time, with Vitesse, that he starts producing."
While things didn't work out for Odegaard in Madrid, he did make his mark in Spain with a spell at Real Sociedad before joining Arsenal in 2021. He is now arguably Arteta's most important player.
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