Thierry Henry, Sol Campbell, and Arsene Wenger (Picture by Shaun Botterill, Dan Mullan/Getty Photos)
Ask any Arsenal fan for his or her favorite signing ever and you may guess the controversial nature of that deal for Sol Campbell can be proper up there.
Okay, Thierry Henry is definitely the Gunners’ biggest ever participant by way of sheer pure expertise, whereas homegrown heroes like Tony Adams may have a particular place in lots of Gooners’ hearts.
Campbell, nevertheless, did what only a few gamers have finished and crossed the divide in north London – shifting from Tottenham to Arsenal on a free switch in 2001.
“I had a proposal from Arsenal however walked out of a BIZARRE assembly with Arsene Wenger” – which legendary determine has no regrets about turning down the Gunners?
The previous England worldwide got here to the tip of his contract at Spurs, and at one level it seemed like he was going to remain and signal a brand new deal.
Campbell went again on that promise, although, and as an alternative of becoming a member of different golf equipment like Manchester United, Barcelona and Juventus, he selected probably the most controversial choice potential by shifting to Arsenal.
Sol Campbell was an ideal participant for Arsenal, however the transfer got here at a substantial private price
Sol Campbell in motion for Arsenal (Picture by Matthew Lewis/Getty Photos)
Campbell most likely gained’t have too many regrets about his transfer to Highbury, as he gained two Premier League titles there, in addition to different main honours.
The towering centre-back was additionally a part of that legendary 2003/04 Invincibles aspect, guaranteeing himself a particular place in English soccer’s historical past books.
Nonetheless, Arsene Wenger later admitted he’s undecided he’d undergo with the Campbell signing once more, given what it did to the participant and his life off the pitch.
“I knew that it could trigger heated debates in London, however I used to be actually convinced by the participant,” Wenger mentioned in an interview a couple of years in the past.
“I assumed he was able to going through the adversity. For me, it was straightforward as a result of everyphysique was conscious that I had signed an ideal participant. However for him, it was extra complicated.
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“The situation was actually disturbing for Sol and he advised me afterwards how extreme it grew to become. He couldn’t go to certain locations for dinner or stroll freely in London due to the anger of the Tottenham followers.
“In hindsight, I’m undecided if I might signal him once more bearing in thoughts the difficulties he confronted.”
That’s some assertion by Wenger on a participant who contributed a lot to Arsenal on the pitch, however whose life clearly grew to become massively difficult off it.