Arsenal
Arsenal are one of the clubs to have Fredrikstad FK’s Eirik Granaas on their transfer agenda.
The 16-year-old’s progress at the Norwegian club has seen Arsenal and several other clubs take notice.
He joined Fredrikstad on a free transfer in January 2025 and made his first team debut later that April.
Two months later, he came off the bench in his side’s 3-0 league defeat to Viking FK.
At that time, he was 15 years and 90 days old and became the youngster player to make his Eliteserien [top division] debut. He broke Arsenal star Martin Ødegaard’s record in the process.
The midfielder has so far made a handful of appearances for Fredrikstad. Last week, he came off the bench to score the winner in the 88th minute in his side’s 3-2 win over Aalesunds FK.
His first team stats are as follows:
Match day squad: 39 times
Appearances: 11
Starts: 0
Total minutes: 141
Goals: 1
Arsenal transfer update from Norway
Despite making 11 appearances so far, Eirik Granaas has caught the attention of clubs across Europe. That’s according to TV2 in Norway, who report on Arsenal’s interest in the ‘rare talent’.
Several European clubs have their sent officials to Norway to watch the youngster live in action for Fredrikstad FK, and this includes the north London club.
In addition to the Gunners, RB Leipzig have been keeping a close watch on the Norway U16 international for a long time.
TV2 commentator Petter Bø Tosterud is in full praise of the wonderkid.
“There is no doubt that he is a special talent that many noticed when he set the age record. This is what sets off alarms at clubs that they should really be following,” he said.
“The Red Bull system is among the best for young guys. It is a club and a system that is good at identifying talent early and making a profit from it.”
TV2 state both Granaas’ representative and Fredrikstad sporting director Anders Jensen didn’t respond to their queries.
The Norwegian club, for their part, are aiming for him to be their new club record sale. Their current record is NOK 40m [€3.6m] from Fallou Fall’s sale to St. Louis City in July 2024.
Arsenal are also looking at other young talents like Palmeiras’ Luis Benedetti. Earlier this year, Sport Witness relayed news of the Gunners’ €10m bid, which wasn’t enough to convince the Brazilian club.
Contract, value and agent info
Eirik Granaas’ current contract will expire in December 2027 and Transfermarkt now value him at €400k.
Norway based agency Aneke/Players Management Group are representing the midfielder.