{"id":27373,"date":"2025-11-20T10:01:31","date_gmt":"2025-11-20T15:01:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2025\/11\/20\/the-truth-is-former-gunner-reveals-arsenal-stars-refusal-to-join-rivals\/"},"modified":"2025-11-20T10:01:31","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T15:01:31","slug":"the-truth-is-former-gunner-reveals-arsenal-stars-refusal-to-join-rivals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2025\/11\/20\/the-truth-is-former-gunner-reveals-arsenal-stars-refusal-to-join-rivals\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;The truth is&#8230;&#8217; &#8211; Former Gunner reveals Arsenal star&#8217;s refusal to join rivals"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_74 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2025\/11\/20\/the-truth-is-former-gunner-reveals-arsenal-stars-refusal-to-join-rivals\/#What_Nacho_Monreal_told_Arsenal_about_Martin_Zvimendi\" >What Nacho Monreal told Arsenal about Martin Zvimendi<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2025\/11\/20\/the-truth-is-former-gunner-reveals-arsenal-stars-refusal-to-join-rivals\/#Nacho_Monreal_tells_the_%E2%80%98truth_about_Martin_Zvimendis_Liverpool_scandal\" >Nacho Monreal tells the &#8216;truth&#8217; about Martin Zvimendi&#8217;s Liverpool scandal<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<!-- Article Start --><\/p>\n<p><strong>Former Arsenal left-back Nacho Monreal has spoken about the club&#8217;s signing of Spanish midfield maestro Martin Zvimendi this summer.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Monreal, who played for both Arsenal and Zvimendi&#8217;s former club Real Sociedad, admits he has long been a big fan of the player, having first seen him as a child.<\/p>\n<p>Zvimendi was quickly regarded as one of the world&#8217;s top players in his position and Arsenal completed a real coup by winning the race to sign him.<\/p>\n<p>Monreal has now spoken to the Daily Mirror about his role in the deal and the fact that the player specifically turned down an offer from Liverpool a year ago.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Nacho_Monreal_told_Arsenal_about_Martin_Zvimendi\"><\/span>What Nacho Monreal told Arsenal about Martin Zvimendi<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Monreal clearly assessed Zvimendi fairly quickly, admitting that he made Arsenal aware of him and encouraged him to move.<\/p>\n<p>However, the Gunners manager praised Mikel Arteta, who is known for his persuasive powers when it comes to attracting players to the club, for getting the deal done.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">&#8220;Yes, I spoke to him (Arteta) and the whole club a long time ago,&#8221; Monreal said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Martin Zvimendi during Arsenal vs. Sunderland (Photo by George Wood\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">\u201cI told them: &#8216;You have to look at Martin Zvimendi&#8217;, because for me when I arrived at Real Sociedad, Mikel Merino, for example, was already playing for Newcastle and Borussia Dortmund.<\/p>\n<p data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">&#8220;He was already a good player, but Martin was starting from scratch, coming from the academy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">\u201cFrom the beginning, even from the first moment, I could see something different, something special.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">&#8220;This guy is 20, 21 years old and he&#8217;s performing like he&#8217;s been playing for 10 years already.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-marker-percentage=\"50\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">&#8220;He has something different and was a really, really good move in my opinion.<\/p>\n<p data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-marker-percentage=\"50\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">&#8220;Yes, they paid a lot of money for him, but he deserved it. He is still young and will remain at the top level for the next six, seven, eight years. This was a good move for Arsenal and of course for Martin.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2 data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-marker-percentage=\"50\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Nacho_Monreal_tells_the_%E2%80%98truth_about_Martin_Zvimendis_Liverpool_scandal\"><\/span>Nacho Monreal tells the &#8216;truth&#8217; about Martin Zvimendi&#8217;s Liverpool scandal<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">Speaking about his talks with Liverpool, he added: &#8220;We didn&#8217;t talk about Arsenal exactly, but Liverpool were actually interested in signing him and he said he wasn&#8217;t ready to leave Real Sociedad.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">&#8220;But when he received the offer from Arsenal this year, he knew it was the right time and the right place to go.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-marker-percentage=\"75\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">\u201cI know Mikel called him, but Mikel is really, really good when he calls players and tells them exactly what they want to hear.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">&#8220;He&#8217;s a very, very smart player, but Arsenal really needed this kind of player.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">Zvimendi has been in great form for Arsenal and it&#8217;s easy to imagine him making a big splash at Anfield, but it just didn&#8217;t work out.<\/p>\n<p data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" data-tmdatatrack-visible=\"true\">This is good news for AFC, who currently sit top of the Premier League and are probably the favorites to take the title from LFC this season.<\/p>\n<p><!-- Article End -->\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former Arsenal left-back Nacho Monreal has spoken about the club&#8217;s signing of Spanish midfield maestro Martin Zvimendi this summer. Monreal, who played for both Arsenal and Zvimendi&#8217;s former club Real Sociedad, admits he has long been a big fan of the player, having first seen him as a child. Zvimendi was quickly regarded as one [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27374,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[40],"class_list":{"0":"post-27373","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-football"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27373","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27373"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27373\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27374"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27373"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27373"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27373"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}