Arsenal have had some painful transfer near misses over the years, particularly in the midfield areas.
Indeed, Arsenal have missed out on some world-class midfield players in the past.
Clarence Seedorf could’ve signed for Arsenal at one point, while Ruud Gullit was even on trial with Arsenal for a period.
Now, speaking on Rio Ferdinand’s Podcast, Yaya Toure has shared just how close he came to signing for Arsenal.
Gael Clichy says Toure rejected Arsenal, but that wasn’t the true story.
The Ivorian says that he was incredibly close to signing for the Gunners, claiming that the paperwork needed to get the deal done was the only thing that stopped the transfer.
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Yaya Toure was so close to joining Arsenal
Toure spoke about how he almost joined his brother, Kolo, at Arsenal.
The midfielder says that a deal was very close, and Arsene Wenger was even willing to delay the move for up to two years to get it to happen.
Unfortunately, Toure didn’t end up coming to Highbury, instead going on to have tons of success at Barcelona and eventually Manchester City.
“Arsene Wenger tried to sign you? He came close didn’t he?” Ferdinand asked.
“Yeah, very close, very close. I had a trial for six months, it was a long time. The problem was the paperwork. You had to play 75% for the national team if you didn’t have a European passport or you had to have a European passport to play in England,” Toure said.
“Arsene was willing to let me go back to Belgium to play for one or two more years to get the passport, because I wasn’t playing for the national team. In my mind it was time to try something else, and then I was sold to Ukraine and I started to get frustrated because I’d failed, my mind was divided.”
Yaya Toure’s record against Arsenal
Toure’s move to Arsenal collapsed in the 2000s, but in the years that followed, the midfielder faced off against the Gunners on a number of occasions.
Indeed, Barcelona faced Arsenal in the Champions League in the 2009/10 season, while Toure would have many memorable battles against Arsenal for Manchester City too.
Of course, City and Barcelona were much more successful than Arsenal throughout the early 2010s, but, interestingly, Toure has a symmetrical record when he has faced off against Arsenal over the years.
| Yaya Toure record vs Arsenal | |
|---|---|
| Games | 15 |
| Wins | 5 |
| Draws | 5 |
| Losses | 5 |
| Goals | 2 |
Toure was a prolific goalscorer during his time at Manchester City, netting 20 goals in the 2013/14 season, but he only managed to bag twice in 15 games against Arsenal over the years.
Arsenal’s trajectory certainly would’ve been different if they’d managed to sign Toure as a youngster, but unfortunately for Arsene Wenger, this is another one that got away.
