Gifted winner announces Mikel Arteta is the reason why i am at Arsenal this summer!

Reiss Nelson has revealed he was close to leaving Arsenal before Mikel Arteta stepped in

Nelson started just five matches across all competitions last season, but in his limited game time, the right winger had quite the impact, recording three goals and three assists, including the dramatic 97th minute winner in 3-2 comeback against Bournemouth.

There had been some speculation that he could leave the club this summer in order to get some more game time – but the decision was made that he woild stay put and agree a new contract

WHAT HAS BEEN SAID – 

Nelson has now revealed that Arteta was the main factor behind that call, telling ESPN: ‘I feel like I’m at a stage now of my career where football is important to me.

‘Of course, with ARSENAL, it’s the team I love and the team I’ve been at since I was like eight years old. There comes a time where you think about also playing football as well.

‘I spoke with Mikel quite a lot of times and he kind of explained the route that he sees for me and the transition that he’s seen in me from previous years to now. We had a good conversation and that changed my mind and I signed.

Reiss Nelson has signed a new long-term deal at @Arsenal ✍️

Any excuse to relive his incredible stoppage-time winner v Bournemouth last season! pic.twitter.com/fPkcvbQaEr

— Premier League (@premierleague) July 6, 2023

‘I feel like I took my chances when my chances were there [last season]. I feel as a player, sometimes you’re just constantly just waiting, waiting, waiting, and then when you get your chance, you might not be ready for your chance.

‘But I thought I was working in the back with a lot of the guys, a lot of the guys were training quite hard with me as well, and I think when I got opportunities to play, I kind of showed what I can do in the minutes that I got.’

The player added: ‘This season I want to kind of set in stone some things that I need to hit. We spoke about that, he [Arteta] said, “This is what I think you need to work on”. I said, “I feel like I need to work on this”.  

‘We came to a conclusion and we sit down and we kind of go through the things I need to work on and hit targets, you know. But for me, it’s just about being available.

‘Like I said, injuries is one of the ones where I missed 17 games last season. So it’s not one of the ones where I want to be missing any games for any niggles and stuff like that. I want to be available and help the team.’

MORE BIG ARSENAL NEWS AND GOSSIP – 

Most Read: Excited Arsenal star announces he cant wait to play alongside summer arrival

Top Read: Arsenal to complete signing in next 48HRS as Gunners star finalising Emirates exit

Must Check Out: Frenchman opens up and announces delight with Arsenal transfer signings!

LOVE ARSENAL? CLICK RIGHT HERE FOR ALL THE LATEST NEWS AND GOSSIP