“I was all set to go to Arsenal” – Forward details how he came close to Gunners, and why it failed

Romanian youngster Claudiu Micovshi has detailed how he nearly ended up at Arsenal before his move to Italy.

The 22-year-old is currently starring for Avellino in Serie C, who he joined from Genoa in August this year.

He’s been in Italy since 2015 when he joined Genoa Under 17s side from Luceafarul Oradea in his homeland.

He’s worked his way up the ranks at Genoa since then, as well as enjoying loan spells with the likes of Avellino and Regina before returning to the former this year.

It’s been an interesting campaign for the Romanian youngster so far, and one that is likely to have more twists and turns to it, but things could have been very different.

That’s because earlier in his career, he found himself close to joining Arsenal, an experience he recently detailed in a conversation with website Tutto Avellino about his career so far.

“There were three games in one day in Cluj, where there were scouts from Arsenal,” he told the website.

“I scored three goals. Arsenal called me, but I didn’t know what to do.

“Then I did the internship in London, where we had tournaments against Benfica, Sporting Lisbon, Basel and Borussia Dortmund, against whom I scored.

“I was all set to go to Arsenal, but at the last minute, they changed their minds. It was still a great experience; I was only 14 years old. I was the first Romanian at Arsenal.”