5 World Class players who rejected Arsenal

Over the course of his career, Arsene Wenger has acquired the reputation of being a manager who loves to develop talented yet raw footballers into superstars. The Frenchman has been a pivotal figure in the careers of players such as Thierry Henry, Cesc Fabregas, Marc Overmars and Freddie Ljungberg to name a few. Wenger, who has spent over 2 decades as manager of Arsenal has won numerous trophies as well as hearts and is considered amongst the best men to have managed a club in England.

However, the transfer market is not an easy place to operate in and even the reputed Frenchman has had his fair share of disappointments in the past and in this segment, we take a look at 5 players who rejected Arsenal.

Vincent Kompany

Kompany rejected Arsenal in order to move to Hamburg

Vincent Kompany might be finding it tough to find extended game time at Manchester City, courtesy of the numerous injuries he has suffered over the course of the last 24 months but make no mistake, when fit, Kompany is amongst the few elite centre-backs on the planet.

The 31-year-old defender began his footballing journey at Belgian club and attracted a lot of praise for his performances, especially at such a young age. The then 17-year-old broke into the Anderlecht starting line-up at a tender age of 17 and was a constant feature in the side that won the Belgian League in his debut season with the senior side.

When it became evident that a player of Kompany’s calibre could no longer remain in Belgium, Arsenal were quick to react. Arsene Wenger was keen to bring in a solid centre-back to the club and the then 20-year-old Kompany fit the bill perfectly.

However, it was not to be as Kompany’s camp believed that moving to a club like Arsenal would curtail his development and instead decided to sign for the German club Hamburg after snubbing Arsene Wenger’s advances.

More than a decade has passed since the big burly centre-back decided against moving to Arsenal and in hindsight, it is a move that has worked perfectly well as Kompany made headlines at Hamburg after a slow start and then played a crucial role in the emergence of Manchester City as English heavyweights since joining them in 2008.

Jamie Vardy

Vardy played a crucial role in Leicester City's title-winning campaign.

Jamie Vardy is a name that is forever etched in the glorious memoirs of English football. The 30-year-old, who began his career at Stockbridge Park Steels FC in 2007 after being released by Sheffield Wednesday, rose through the ranks courtesy of his goal-scoring prowess at FC Halifax Town and Fleetwood Town before he was snapped up by Leicester City in May 2012 and his performances for the Foxes have made him a name known throughout the globe.

While he did begin life in Premier League on a slow note, Vardy truly came to the forefront during the 2015-16 season where his goal-scoring abilities played a pivotal role in Claudio Ranieri’s men lifting the Premier League trophy against all odds.

So, when Arsenal came calling for his signature at the beginning of last season, many believed it was a well-deserved opportunity and a natural progression in his career. Many claimed that a deal to bring the player to the Emirates was all but done when Wenger decided to table a £22 million bid for the striker, thus triggering his rumoured release clause.

However, Vardy had different ideas. The Sheffield born striker decided to snub the Gunners in order to remain at Leicester and shattered the hopes of Arsenal fans around the world. The 30-year-old who later claimed it was an easy decision to make cited regular playing time as well as the difference in footballing ideology as the reasons that forced him to remain at the King Power Stadium.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Zlatan does not do auditions Mr. Wenger.

The enigma that is Zlatan Ibrahimovic seems to be getting better with age. The Swedish superstar, who began his footballing career at his hometown club Malmo, has had the honour of pulling on jerseys of world-class clubs such as Ajax, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Barcelona and most recently Manchester United and has been a goal-scoring machine in whichever country he has played in.

However, his story could have been a lot different had he joined Arsenal in the summer of 2000. After having impressed for Malmo’s youth squads, Zlatan broke into the club’s first team in 1999 and was an instant hit at the club as he scored some vital goals and it was inevitable that several top clubs showed an interest in acquiring his services.

Arsene Wenger was amongst those interested in signing the Swedish and even invited Zlatan to come down to North London in the summer of 2000 so as to make progress and even offered him the club’s jersey with number 9 printed on it. However, even Arsene might not have imagined what was to unfold in the weeks to come as when the French manager asked the Swede to have a trial at the club, Zlatan refused, famously claiming “Zlatan does not do auditions.”

While the move to North-London failed to materialise, there is no denying the fact that the Swedish superstar has enjoyed a stellar career winning numerous trophies as well as earning several deserved personal awards in the process.

Luis Suarez

Suarez was keen on leaving Anfield for the Emirates in 2013.

Luis Suarez is a name that has been mired in controversy ever since he broke into the footballing limelight and mostly for the wrong reasons. However, it would be foolhardy to claim that the Uruguayan is not a world class player for when he is on song, even the most seasoned of defenders can find it tough to contain the eccentric striker.

Suarez had joined Liverpool from Ajax in the winter transfer window of 2011 and despite being a regular goalscorer at Anfield, he grew frustrated towards the end of the 2012-13 season. It was cited that the club’s inability to compete for silverware as well as increased media attention had made Suarez keen on a move away from Merseyside and Arsenal were believed to be in the pole position to sign him.

The Reds had failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League yet again and when Arsenal made an approach for the Uruguayan, he was keen to force a move to the North London club. However, Arsene Wenger decided he would pursue Suarez in his own fashion and comically decided to table a bid of £40,000,001 for the Uruguayan, which the hierarchy at Liverpool promptly refused.

While the Gunners still remained keen, a brief discussion with the likes of Steven Gerrard enthused some confidence into the Uruguayan with regards to the ambitions of the Reds and Suarez openly cited his wish to remain at Anfield just a few days later, making him another world class player who came ever so close to joining Arsenal.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Wenger's efforts to sign Ronaldo went in vain when Sir Alex Ferguon swooped in to acquire his signature.

Cristiano Ronaldo has gone from a skinny talented youngster to a world-class player courtesy of his hard work. The Portuguese superstar began his footballing journey at Sporting Lisbon and was already making heads turn whilst still in his late teens courtesy of his electric performances.

When an up and coming player starts displaying his abilities, it goes without saying that a number of clubs seemed keen on signing him up including the likes of Liverpool, Barcelona, and Arsenal. Arsene Wenger was under immense pressure to ensure the finances of the club were intact in order for them to undertake the project of moving to a new stadium and the Frenchman was willing to bring in younger players in a bid to balance his books and Ronaldo seemed like the perfect fit.

The 2002-03 season was his first season as a senior Sporting player. Yet, it became clear very early in the season that he was very unlikely to remain on their books in the upcoming season and Arsene, who was amongst those believed to be in the driving seat for his signature, even met with Ronaldo at Arsenal’s stadium in November of 2002 to discuss the possibilities.

However, it was not to be as Sir Alex Ferguson, as has been the case in several transfers, decided to jump into the fray for his signature and ironed out a deal with Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes before Arsenal could, thus bringing one of the brightest young talents to Old Trafford.