Bacary Sagna claims that Hector Bellerin will be looking forward to a new challenge, and that an exit from Arsenal is on the cards.
The French former defender spent seven years in North London before leaving to join Manchester City in 2014, and he believes he understands Bellerin.
Sagna claims that the Spanish full-back will be wanting a fresh challenge after a number of years as the club’s first choice at right-back.
“Hector has been there for years,” Sagna told Goal. “He started playing not long after I left, so he has been in the team for like six years.
“And a bit like I felt, he probably feels that he wants to challenge himself because he has been there for a long time.
“It’s nothing to do with the club, nothing to do with winning cups or whatever. At some point if you want to progress, in my mind you need to go somewhere and challenge yourself and start from zero again. This is how I felt.
“Arsenal was my club and is still my beloved club, but after seven years I had the feeling that because I was part of the house, even when I didn’t deserve to play, I would have played.
“It’s quite tricky as a player. Hector’s still young, he still has five good years to play at the top level and he can do it. So, if he left now, I wouldn’t be surprised.”
Bellerin arrived on the scene with a bang, but his progress did seem to slow in recent seasons, and I can’t help but believe that the Spaniard would benefit from a new challenge.
Arsenal and Hector’s separation seems inevitable at some point, and I believe that both parties would benefit from freshening things up.
Will this be Bellerin’s last season at Arsenal?
Patrick