Arsenal defender Takehiro Tomiyasu has suggested that he thought he was heading to Tottenham Hotspur on deadline day.
Tottenham were heavily linked with Tomiyasu for months thanks to Fabio Paratici’s knowledge of the Italian market.
The Athletic even reported in July that Tottenham were on the verge of a £15million deal to sign Tomiyasu from Bologna.
However, the weeks passed and Tottenham didn’t finalise such a move.
Come deadline day, Tomiyasu instead joined Tottenham’s North London rivals Arsenal.
The Japanese international has quickly become a fan favourite at Arsenal, and the Gunners have conceded just four goals in seven league games with Tomiyasu in the team.
Tomiyasu claims he picked Arsenal over Tottenham
Tomiyasu has now told DAZN back in Japan that he thought he wouldn’t be able to join Arsenal.
The defender, who was in conversation with ex-Japan international Atsuto Uchida, thought he was signing for Tottenham instead.
However, Tomiyasu then rejected a move to Tottenham and joined Arsenal immediately, suggesting he favoured the Gunners all along.
“I thought I wasn’t able to join Arsenal. I thought I was going to Spurs. On Deadline Day, I rejected them. Arsenal asked me to join them and I did immediately,” said Tomiyasu.
Tottenham ended up signing another right back instead as Emerson Royal came in from Barcelona.
Emerson hasn’t exactly impressed regularly just yet, and Arsenal will feel they came out of this situation as winners.
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