Former Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere says he urged Matteo Guendouzi to pick the Gunners ahead of other suitors for the good of his fledgling career.
Guendouzi joined Arsenal from Ligue 2 Lorient, where he played with Aliadiere, this summer for a fee of £8million, rejecting interest from Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain to make the switch to the Emirates Stadium.
The 19-year-old had grown up watching compatriot Thierry Henry starring for Arsenal and Guendouzi revealed last month that he had sought Aliadiere’s advice before agreeing a move.
Aliadiere, who played 51 games for Arsenal between 2001 and 2007, was in no doubt that the youngster had the qualities to make the grade in the Premier League.
“I knew when I first saw Matteo that he had something special and that a lot of clubs would be after him,” he said.
“I said to him that for his development Arsenal would definitely be the right place for him. You can go to big clubs and never get a chance but Arsenal always give you a chance to their young players.”
Guendouzi’s rise has been all the more remarkable given that he is keeping Arsenal’s marquee summer signing Lucas Torreira out of the starting lineup but the teenager is already proving himself to be a shrewd investment.
Each of Unai Emery’s first four Premier League games have seen Guendouzi start in the midfield engine room, with the head coach describing the French youngster’s progress as “a very big, positive surprise”.
Emery is not the only one taken aback by how swiftly Guendouzi, voted Arsenal’s player of the month for August, has settled in the top flight.
“I have been surprised [how much Guendouzi has played since joining Arsenal],” Aliadiere told Standard Sport. “When I saw him joining the club I didn’t expect him to start straight away, I thought it would take him a bit of time to adapt but he’s such a confident lad. When I was playing with him at Lorient you could see that, on top of having the talent, he’s just so confident in himself.”