Arsenal are on the verge of hosting Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday. The spectre of a previous decision in transfer is looming large. One of the Bayern players who have come to face his old team is Sergio Gnabry. He has left the Emirates in 2016 in rather dubious conditions. However, former insider at Arsenal just came out to tell the frustration that the club still feels regarding the move. It implies that Mikel Arteta is also annoyed and experiencing the same feeling at present in the context of a high stakes game.
Gnabry’s Turbulent Arsenal Tenure
Gnabry joined the academy of Arsenal in 2011 after VfB Stuttgart acquired him. However, Arsenal secured his initial team appearance during the season under the leadership of Arsene Wenger in 2012. He made 18 senior appearances to date. The German prodigy shone in bursts but was brought down by constant injury problems and a fateful loan to West Brom in 2015/16. Gnabry wanted out, and in 2016, transferred to Werder Bremen. Later Bayern picked him up at a steal price of EUR8 million in 2017. There, he became a winners of the Champions League and 2020 treble and had more than 100 goals.
From Bargain Buy to Bayern Star
Volz, the scout that was with Arsenal at the time when Gnabry was playing, confirms that the club did not underrate him. He had, as he remarked, made his first professional appearances at an early age, and they were good. However, the loans failed and Gnabry chose another way. Arsenal felt frustrated by missing out on a potential which they felt could flourish with time- that was the echoes of the regrets in transfer that have haunted the present day managers like Arteta who has transformed the Gunners into title contenders only to find out how painful it can be to miss potential.
Authorโs Opinion
In this era, such exits are rarer which makes Arteta annoyed. The Spaniard demands loyalty and long-term vision. Gnabry’s success at Bayernโscoring against Arsenal in 2017 and now returning as a threatโforces introspection. Volz added optimistically, “You canโt overlook a quality like Gnabryโs โ and thatโs how he still made it to the very top.”
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