Bacary Sagna has hit back at suggestions from Arsene Wenger that he was tapped up by Manchester City before quitting Arsenal to join the Premier League champions this summer.
The France full-back left as a free agent after seven years at the Emirates, with Wenger claiming last week that the deal with City had been agreed ‘a long time ago’. But Sagna, 31, has defended his honesty and denied that the move was motivated by money.
‘I know exactly what happened, everyone knows,’ he said. ‘I’m not a tricky person. I’m very professional.
‘All I will say is that I was at Arsenal for a number of a years. I have always been straight. I have always given the maximum, even when I came back from injury and was not fully fit, I always played. I don’t know why he said this.
‘I have been fair because I’ve respected my contract. I spent six years on the same contract and never went to the boss’ office to ask for more, but that’s life.
‘It’s not about the money. Can you find one player in Europe who stayed six years on the same contract? That’s what I did and I never asked for anything.’
Arsenal fans taunted Sagna during their team’s 3-0 win over City in the Community Shield at Wembley last weekend, even though he was not playing for his new club.
The two teams meet again at the Emirates on September 13 and Sagna says he is prepared for more abuse after following in the footsteps of Samir Nasri, Gael Clichy, Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure since the Abu Dhabi takeover of City in 2008.
‘It won’t hurt me,’ he said. ‘I’m ready to expect anything now.
‘It’s not easy to read some comments on social networks. I know it’s only a small minority and not all the Arsenal fans, but it’s still not easy to read it because I feel I gave everything.
‘If I was the first one then okay, but I don’t know what to think. Every time a player leaves they seem to get abuse. There are so many on social networks but that doesn’t represent the whole Arsenal family.
‘Of course, I had a great moment with Arsenal. That will stay with me for the rest of my life, but my team is City now, it is not Arsenal.
‘To me, I made the right choice and I’m very happy to be here, no matter what they think. I’m not the first one to leave their club and I won’t be the last one.
‘I’m looking at my personal life now and I want to fight, get in the team and give the maximum. I don’t look at the negatives.’
Sagna was in tears after Arsenal lifted the FA Cup at Wembley last season as he won his first trophy in English football in his last game for the club.
But the former Auxerre defender insisted that the decision to leave had already been made some time earlier, and he has never had any second thoughts.
‘(Leaving) was very emotional,’ he added. ‘It was not an easy move, but for me it was a personal choice and the right time to do it.
‘Luckily I won a trophy in my very last game. I was very glad and it was a very emotional day for me because I had spent so many years trying to win a trophy. To me we had the potential to win trophies, but we only won one.
‘At the beginning of the season, I knew we had to have a really great season. I wish we had won the league, but we didn’t. At least we won the FA Cup.
‘I knew I had to come (to City), no matter what happened. I had already made my mind up. I wanted to change. I wanted to boost my career. I’m 31 now and it was time to move.’
Source: Daily Mail