The German boss has followed Odegaard’s career despite a move to Dortmund falling through.
Jurgen Klopp has revealed he has retained an interest in Martin Odegaard since his failed move to sign him for Borussia Dortmund.
Odegaard has become a crucial player for Arsenal after his successful move from Real Madrid last year.
The new Arsenal captain had a chance to start his senior career under Klopp but decided to join the Spanish giants as a teenager.
“I really like him,” Klopp told TV2. “It’s easy [for him] these days. It was a bit more difficult at the start of his career when he was at Real Madrid. “Then it looked like it might not go his way.
“I was really disappointed by that because we wanted him in Dortmund when he was very young.
“We had a long conversation when he was still a boy, together with his father. In the end, he decided on Madrid, and that’s fine, but that’s why I’ve always followed him.”
He added: “You can only imagine how many talents, huge talents, crazy talents, I have seen over the course of quite a while in this industry.
“At the time, Martin was 15 years old and already playing in Norway. The whole world went berserk.
“Until he was 15, he probably experienced no hardship. After that, a lot of things went against him. It makes him the person he is now, the man he is now, and the player he is now.”
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