Former Arsenal midfielder Serge Gnabry bagged a debut hat-trick for Germany last night, and it makes you think why Wenger didn’t try harder to keep him.
The highly-rated 21-year-old was seen by many as one for the future after bursting on to the scene during the 2013/14 season, and the Emirates faithful quickly took to the German following some impressive displays.
However, despite his promising start to his Arsenal career and stiff competition in the first-team, Gnabry was loaned out to West Brom last season to gain further first-team experience. Unfortunately for the young German, he failed to deliver at the Hawthorns, where he made just three appearances for The Baggies and was sent back to Arsenal.
He then shone in this year’s Olympics for the German Under-21 side where he was joint top-scorer in the tournament, reminding Wenger of his ability and potential.
Even though his potential was great, had three-years left on his Arsenal contract and Arsene Wenger wanted to keep him at the Emirates, Gnabry opted to seek first-team football elsewhere, and Werder Bremen snapped him up for as little as £5 million over the summer.
Some may say that there was nothing Wenger could do to keep him at Arsenal, but there was. The Frenchman should have given him a proper run in the side when he was impressing, but never did.
It’s still early days to say if Wenger missed a trick with Gnabry, but early signs suggests he has.
