Top 10 players that Arsene Wenger claims he nearly signed

Wenger 'nearly' signed some of the best players of this generation at Arsenal.×Proofread “We had identified Di Maria when he was 17. We wanted him to come here. But he goes to Portugal and from Portugal he goes to Spain. Why? Because he could not get a work permit. That means that he can only come to England once he’s worth a huge amount of money. What does it mean if at the end of the day he comes into the country anyway, with the only difference being it’s for a huge amount of money. And who do you pay that to? A club like Real Madrid, who don’t need the money.”Now unless you have no idea about football or live in Mars, you can guess who might’ve said these words without even paying attention to the title. It is that time of the year again, the time of the European club transfer window.It is also that time of the year when we see Arsene Wenger and his club being linked to every major player from every major club, before signing some “one-for-the-future” 17-year old Frenchman. While Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil have been rare exceptions, it has generally always been a case of so near, yet so far for the North London club.So, here’s a look at the very best “Oh! So nearly” Arsene Wenger signings. Warning: Gooners who have no idea about what they’re going to witness may proceed with caution.

#1 Lionel Messi

"I think in the end [Messi] was not so keen to move. It was not completely down to a flat in the end, it was down to the fact that Messi was comfortable at Barcelona.”

Brendan Rodgers knows what Wenger is talking about here. For some players, it isn’t just about the money and the prestige. Accommodation matters. And that is supposedly the reason why a 15-year-old Leo Messi politely refused the chance to join Arsenal. Wenger tried to sign not just the Argentine, but also Gerard Pique and... and Cesc Fabregas, about whom I’m not going to elaborate as I don’t want to put salt into Gooner wounds.

Now imagine the trio of Ibrahimovic-Messi-Ronaldo. Like Ray Hudson would put it, “Orgasmic!”. Or as Arsene Wenger might rather have put it “I could’ve signed them, but I had Gnabry, Sanogo and Miyaichi, so I didn’t”.