‘It was forbidden for him to leave’ – Mikel Arteta admits he forced Leandro Trossard to turn down summer transfer after Belgian kickstarted Tottenham thrashing

Trossard opened the scoring for Arsenal against Tottenham in the 36th minute on Sunday at the Emirates before Eberechi Eze bagged a hat-trick to complete a 4-1 win. The victory moves Arsenal six points clear of Chelsea at the top of the Premier League table as Arteta’s men aim to end their long wait for the title. Eze was one of a host of big-name signings at Arsenal this summer, with the likes of Viktor Gyokeres and Noni Madueke also arriving, leading to speculation Trossard could move on. Bayern Munich, Fenerbahce and Besiktas were just some of the clubs believed to be interested in Trossard, however, the 30-year-old ended up staying and has even been rewarded with a pay increase and a new contract that runs until 2027.

The Arsenal manager spoke about the situation after the game at the Emirates and admitted there was “no chance” he would have sanctioned an exit for Trossard. He told reporters: “For me it was forbidden for him to leave. No chance. I know the player that he is, and surrounded with the players that we have, he’s a player that is going to make a difference for us. I fully agree. It was one of the best games, so aggressive with and without the ball, so effective, he could have scored another one or two goals, and he was involved in so many positive actions. So that’s what we need. As I said, I think individually the players were excellent today.”

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Trossard could not hide his delight after victory over Spurs and admitted it was a perfect day for the Gunners. He told the club’s media: “I enjoyed that a lot! I think it was important to get that goal. After that it gave us the edge to go on and score more goals, to create chances. I think we were dominant before, but obviously that gives you that extra bit of confidence to go and win the game. It was a perfect night for us. It was a really good game overall in every aspect, from defence to attack. We’re really happy with all the goals we scored as well.

“It was just joy. Everyone was cheering, there’s not much to say about it. That’s what we really wanted and it’s nice that we could give this back to the fans. The atmosphere was amazing, it was so good, they pushed us forward as well. So yeah, it’s a really good night today.”

Trossard’s goal continued an incredible record for the Belgian for Arsenal. The 30-year-old has now scored 32 goals for Arsenal and has never been on the losing side when he has found the back of the net for the Gunners. Arsenal have won 24 and drawn eight of the games in which Trossard has struck since his arrival at the club from Brighton in 2023.

Arsenal’s win over Spurs sees the Gunners head into a big week domestically and in Europe in fine form. Next up is a visit from Bayern Munich in the Champions League, with both teams aiming to preserve their perfect records in the competition so far. Arsenal then head to Chelsea for a top-of-the-table battle against the Blues at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League.