Borussia Dortmund midfielder Nuri Sahin has discussed how he came close to joining Arsenal almost 10 years ago.
The Turkish midfielder sealed a move back to the Bundesliga club last summer after a torrid time with Spanish side Real Madrid, which included a drastic loan spell with Liverpool.
Sahin has made just nine appearances for the German club this season after troubling injuries and he has discussed how his career could have gone down a different route had he joined Arsenal in 2005.
“When I was in the Under-17s in 2005, Arsenal wanted to sign me with a great bid. My family didn’t want me to go England,” he told Ntvspor.
“They knew that Dortmund would rise again. I’m grateful for this. After the bid, Dortmund realised that I’m valuable.
“The next year Bert van Marwijk put me in the first team. I was only 16. Also [Jurgen] Klopp trusted me. He is a great person.
“He still keeps his humanity in the professional world. When I was in Madrid, he called me many times. We would talk for two to three hours but not about football.”