In the Norwegian city of Drammen, overlooking the idyllic fjord, there was a gravel pitch.
For years this had been the scene of scraped knees, mossy growth and unpredictably bouncy balls, until a group of local parents clubbed together in 2005 to raise 50,000 kroner (roughly £5,000) to have it upgraded to artificial turf.
While a motivating factor had of course been the safety of the children, for many the redevelopment was viewed as an investment in the talent of local youth, and one six-year-old in particular.
That may seem like an unreasonably high set of expectations to place on one so young, but pressure is something Martin Odegaard has never really struggled to deal with.
After breaking into Stromsgodset's first team before even reaching high school, he broke a 104-year record to become the Norwegian men's national team's youngest ever player in 2014 at just 15 years and 253 days old, leading many to dub him his country's golden child.
This sparked interest from around the globe, with 30 club scouts reportedly in attendance at Stromsgodset's Tippaligaen clash with Stabaek to watch a kid so young that he could have taken the bus home from the game for free!
It may seem like a product of natural ability that saw him reach such heights so early, but his rapid ascension was no accident.
Growing up, Odegaard would spend days with his father Hans Erik on the artificial pitch honing each aspect of his game. Odegaard senior - himself a professional player with 189 appearances for Stromsgodset under his belt - is a firm subscriber to the 10,000 hours approach to development and this is clear to see in the way his son conducts himself today.
The 23-year-old is understood to be one of the hardest trainers at London Colney, who asks the right questions and regularly likes to spend extra time working on individual aspects of his game.
Take free kicks, for example, a lesser spotted trait in Odegaard's loan spell with Arsenal last season, that proved to be a match-winning improvement in September's win over Burnley at Turf Moor and very nearly broke the deadlock during Sunday's reverse fixture at the Emirates Stadium.
There is no secret behind this upturn in skill. Just dedication and hard work.
"If you look for the perfect professional, he wouldn't be very far from that," said Mikel Areta when describing the 23-year-old in December.
The Spaniard is thought to be a huge admirer of Odegaard and fought hard to ensure that he was Arsenal's number one target in central attacking midfield during the summer transfer window, amid interest in the likes of Emi Buendia and James Maddison.
The feeling is mutual and to such an extent that the Norwegian is among the candidates to take over from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as captain when a permanent successor is announced next season.
Aside from professionalism though, what makes the former Real Madrid man a true Arteta player, is his appreciation of space.
“He helps us to do the processes much better," the Spaniard said after Odegaard's goal against Olympiacos in the Europa League last year.
“He helps us as a team because he gives us a lot of continuity on the ball. He's really intelligent to find the spaces, he attracts a lot of opponents."
This is again is no stroke of luck.
On the artificial pitch in Drammen, Odegaard spent hours with his father practicing a drill where Martin would turn away before Hans Erik would call to turn back and quickly pass it either left or right forcing his son to react.
The goal was to develop an understanding of the youngster's surroundings and to foster a better comprehension of his orientation on the pitch.
This again is evident in his play with Arsenal now.
As Odegaard plays passes to younger teammates like Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli, he can be seen ordering them where to play next before they've even received the ball. This is borne out of an extraordinary understanding of play that has been in development for years, but also the comfort he is feeling with his surroundings.
After a nomadic early career that saw him bounce between loan spells in Holland and Spain following his move to Real Madrid, the 23-year-old has finally found some much-needed stability in his career and is determined to make the most of it.
"I feel like I've come here to settle down, stay for a while and achieve a lot of good things," Odegaard told the Arsenal website after signing permanently in the summer. "I'm really motivated to get this club back where it belongs. I really believe that we can achieve something great here."
It's this drive, mixed with the embodiment of the type of football Arteta wants to play, that makes the Norwegian such a poster boy for the project currently in motion at the Emirates Stadium.
With Aubameyang moving closer to the exit door, and the futures of Alexandre Lacazette, Rob Holding and Granit Xhaka all far from certain, the Arsenal leadership team is in transition.
As Arteta seeks to guide his young team towards their full potential in the coming years, early indications have suggested that it will be Kieran Tierney who takes over the armband going forward.
But as a 23-year-old who's seen more in his short career than most professional footballers see in a lifetime, Odegaard will be in and among the contenders. A year on from signing for the Gunners the first time around, he's already shown that he's perfectly capable of handling the pressure.
