During an interview with France Football, Manchester City star Riyad Mahrez revealed how close he was to signing for Arsenal during his time as a Leicester City player.
Mahrez played a starring role in Leicester City’s against-the-odds Premier League title triumph back in 2015/16. He, N’Golo Kante and Jamie Vardy were the star performers, with two of them going on to taste title-winning success elsewhere.
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While Mahrez was one of those who moved on and won trophies, speaking to France Football (translated into English by M.E.N), revealed that he was disappointed not to have done it sooner.
“For me, it’s clear that I lost two years at the highest level. I lost two years! Because instead of arriving at City at 27, I could have been there at 24, 25.”
“Leicester blocked me. They told me: ‘You’re not leaving, you’re not leaving’.”
“My agent had spoken to [Arsene] Wenger who really wanted me. It was nearly all done with Arsenal in 2016. I was really frustrated.”
“It wasn’t easy to go from being the best player in the Premier League to being a part of a team fighting against relegation.”
“It’s not the same job. Everyone is waiting for you around the corner.”
Mahrez can hardly complain with how things have panned out for him, playing in what is one of the best teams the Premier League has ever seen. Though, you can see his point – he is now 30-years-old.
A talent like the Algerian deserved to have a much longer and more prosperous career at the top level, but he can count himself fortunate for what he’s achieved over the past 5-6 years, nonetheless.