It's hard to relate it to American sports since they're a great club team that spends money and is always one of the top squads in Barclays Premier League and Europe but it's a proven fact (over and over again), that almost all great players will leave Arsenal at some point.
The latest to join his fellow French countrymen (Patrick Vieira, Kolo Toure) at Manchester City is left back Gael Clichy, who signed a four-year deal with the team that finished third last season in the Premier League and captured the FA Cup.
Arsenal was forced to sell the 25-year-old Frenchman because he had only one year left on his contract and could have moved on a free transfer at the end of next season.
Clichy spent eight years at Arsenal after joining from Cannes in August 2003. His ability on the left of defense was one of the reasons the Gunners were able to allow England international Ashley Cole to make a high-profile switch to Chelsea three years later.
Clichy was backup to Cole when Arsenal won the 2003-04 Premier League title with an unbeaten record, making him at the time the youngest player to earn a Premier League winner's medal - aged 18. He was the last member of that squad still with the north London club.
"I can't wait to get started and I think anything is possible with this team,'' Clichy said. "When I first came to England, it was Kolo Toure and Patrick Vieira who took me under their wing and really looked after me.
"Kolo would pick me up and drop me at home and his wife used to cook meals for me. Patrick was always there to offer me advice, so it's wonderful to be back and at the same club they are at.''
City did not say how much it paid for Clichy. British media widely reported the fee to be about 7 million pounds.
"I'm really happy to be joining such a great club,'' Clichy said. "I hope I can add to the quality we already have here because we have a fantastic squad who I believe will continue to get better.''
With their playing style, supporters and history, Arsenal is one of the most likable club teams in the world. British author Nick Hornby wrote the book Fever Pitch about them before it was adapted into the terrible Jimmy Fallon movie about the Boston Red Sox.
So if you're a fan of the Gunners, you must go to sleep every night worrying that their current superstars Andrey Arshavin and Cesc Fabregas will eventually leave you at some point. That's no way to live.
Follow @RichSlate
Tweet
No comments:
Post a Comment