Real Madrid Star Explains The Major Reason Why He Rejected Arsenal At 16
Arsenal has been reported to have missed out on some top football players before they achieved greatness.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Yaya Toure were two famous names that former head coach Arsene Wenger missed out on singing when they were young players.
Another player that Arsenal missed out on was the current Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde. The Uruguayan had a trial with the Gunners when he was 16, with Wenger offering him the chance to sign for the London club.
However, Valverde decided to stay in Uruguay instead of accepting a significant wage rise with Arsenal. Speaking to The Players' Tribune, he revealed the reason why.
They sent me on trial to London for a week, and I just wasn’t comfortable. If you only think of material things, it sounds great. But we are not robots. The reality was that my family couldn’t come to London with me. I’d have to live alone, not speaking the language, at 16 years old.Fede Valverde
Valverde has established himself as one of the best midfielders in the world over his eight years with Los Blancos. It will make Arsenal fans wonder what it would have been like if he had accepted the contract offer.
It appears he would not have moved to the Premier League at 16, as his family was too important to him.
For every one kid who succeeds moving overseas, you don’t see the 100 who fail. I was either crazy enough or courageous enough to say no. Give me freezing showers as long as I can stay with my family. In my head, I was thinking I would stay in Uruguay for my whole career.Fede Valverde
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Jordan Merritt is a freelance soccer writer who covers Real Madrid CF On SI. He is an obsessive soccer fan and an Arsenal supporter.
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