Has Arsene Wenger’s indecision from 2013 cost Arsenal a reported target seven years later?
It’s almost two years since it was announced that Arsene Wenger would be leaving Arsenal.
On April 20 in 2018, the Gunners revealed that their long-serving manager would be leaving the club after 22 years of service, seven FA Cup titles and three Premier Leagues.
Wenger remains Arsenal’s most successful-ever manager but, as fans of the North London club will tell you, he was not without his faults.
The Frenchman boasted some of the world’s finest players at various points during his lengthy stint as manager, but there were also some major missed opportunities, with the likes of Yaya Toure, Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic on his radar before becoming household names.
And another one is Antoine Griezmann.
The France international was linked with a move to Arsenal after emerging as a serious player for Real Sociedad in 2013, but Wenger kept him waiting.
Griezmann later revealed in his autobiography: “Finally a few hours before the market closed, he let us know Arsenal would not make a move. I don’t like to be told something and for it not to happen. So when Eric told me later that the London club were interested again I told him ‘Forget it, after the blow they gave us’.”
The 29-year-old is now a World Cup winner and plying his trade for Barcelona, but the Emirates Stadium club, now with Raul Sanllehi and Edu in charge of transfer-related matters, have been linked once again [Sport] and you wonder whether Griezmann still harbours a touch of animosity toward Arsenal, due to Wenger’s indecision seven years ago.
If it happens, it would be the club’s biggest-ever signing, given that they’d have to break their transfer record on the £93 million-rated attacker but, despite Wenger’s departure, it’s possible that Griezmann washed his hands with the idea of joining Arsenal way back when.
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