Arsenal
Spurs Ace: Arsenal Tried To Sign Me
Belgian centre back Jan Vertonghen has claimed he rejected a move to Arsenal before deciding to join their north London rivals Tottenham from Ajax this summer.
Despite the transfer window being closed, there is always transfer gossip doing the rounds in the papers and we’ll keep you up-to-date with the latest news during the coming months. Today, Jan Vertonghen claims he rejected Arsenal.
Jan Vertonghen has claimed he rejected a move to Arsenal before deciding to join rivals Tottenham this summer, according to Sky Sports News.
The 25-year-old was subject to intense speculation over his future this summer and was linked to a number of clubs before making a £9.6m move from Ajax to White Hart Lane in July.
Arsenal were one of the clubs heavily linked with the Belgian centre back and Vertonghen has admitted he thought long and hard about joining the Gunners, and even sought the advice of Arsenal legend Dennis Bergkamp – who is now assistant coach at Ajax.
However, despite his Arsenal links, Bergkamp spoke well about Tottenham as well as the Gunners and told the player to make his own decision.
“He [Bergkamp] knows Tottenham is a very big club. He’s a very good guy and I get along with him very well,”
“He was very positive about both clubs and about London, and he just said ‘make your choice.’
Vertonghen is quoted as saying by Sky Sports News
Vertonghen revealed that he decided to join Spurs, despite Arsenal’s interest, after the club went out their way to make him feel wanted in north London. He continued:
“I chose Spurs because they gave me a good feeling. I spoke to Daniel Levy and I talked with Rafael van der Vaart.
“They invited me here and gave me the best feeling in the world. From that moment on I said to myself, ‘I want to play here’.
“Arsenal did try to sign me but I’d already made my decision that I wanted to play here.”
The former Ajax stopper also revealed he’s spoken with fellow countryman and Arsenal defender Thomas Vermaelen about the rivalry between Arsenal and Tottenham:
“Thomas told me it was like Ajax and Feyenoord,”
“They’re big rivals but when I walk down the street even the Arsenal fans have been very respectful.”
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