A former Premier League star has revealed that he once turned down the opportunity to play for Arsenal, and he doesn’t regret it.
When the Gunners come calling, most players leap at the opportunity to play for such a prestigious club.
One of the most successful and storied footballing institutions on the planet, few teams can offer what the North Londoners can offer, both in terms of career reputation and money.
However, not everyone is seduced by the lush Emirates Stadium pitch and the state-of-the-art facilities at the Sohba Realty training ground.
Ashley Williams revealed that he rejected loan move to Arsenal in 2013
Ashley Williams enjoyed a successful career at the top level, making over 350 appearances for Swansea City and managing 86 caps for Wales.
However, the defender’s stock within the game could have changed significantly had he taken an opportunity that was presented to him in January 2013.
In the midst of one of Swansea’s most successful seasons ever, the Welsh club’s captain has revealed that he had the chance to join Arsenal on loan.
However, he told Sky Sports that he rejected the proposal that was on the table from Arsene Wenger, because he had his heart set on winning the League Cup at the Liberty Stadium.
“I had the option of joining Arsenal on loan,” Williams explained.
“But I wanted to stay because we’d made the League Cup final at Swansea. I wanted to play the League Cup final with my teammates, which I did. So I ended up staying for longer with Swansea. That was a weird 12 hours for me, where I didn’t know what to do.
“It’s Arsenal. It’s a big club. I love Swansea and I wanted to play in that final at Wembley. We knew we had Bradford in the final at that point, so we had a good chance of winning it.
“I wanted to be the captain and lift the trophy at Wembley. We ended up winning it, so I didn’t regret it. I can’t remember all the details but the option was there and it was a tough call. I don’t regret it at all because that was one of my favourite days of my career.”
Swansea ultimately went on to beat Bradford 5-0 at Wembley, and Williams did indeed become the first player to lift a major trophy in the Swans’ history.
Why did Arsenal want to sign Ashley Williams on loan in January 2013?
Arsenal’s centre-back cohort in the 2012/13 season consisted of Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny, Thomas Vermaelen, Sebastian Squillaci and Johan Djourou.
Thus, the Gunners were certainly stacked with options in this position, making their supposed pursuit of Williams slightly odd on the surface.
That said, Wenger’s side had not been in the best form defensively that campaign, shipping three goals against Fulham, five against Reading in the League Cup and three against Newcastle.
The Frenchman’s team were vulnerable at the back, and Williams was one of the most revered defenders in the Premier League at the time.
However, Wenger’s centre-back cohort had also actually been somewhat decimated by the end of the January window.
Vermaelen was out with an ankle injury, and Djourou had left on loan for Hannover, meaning an additional figure in this part of the pitch was probably needed.
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