Mikel Arteta and his men have made a trip to Spain as Arsenal take on Sevilla in the Champions League tie later today.
Ahead of the European clash, ABC Sevilla had a chat with Sébastien Squillaci, who represented both the La Liga side and the Gunners during his playing career.
The Frenchman spent two years at Sevilla before leaving them for Arsenal in 2010. He was at the north London club for three years and then returned to his country when he joined Bastia.
Sevilla’s decision to appoint Antonio Álvarez as manager in 2010 didn’t work in the 43-year-old’s favour and that convinced him to seek a move away from the Andalusian club.
When asked about his decision to join Arsenal, the former centre-back has revealed that he wanted to escape from the difficult situation at the Spanish club.
“It was a bit complicated. It was the first time [lack of trust from manager] in my career that I felt that. At first, he didn’t start me during the preseason, that’s why I asked Monchi if I could leave,” he said.
“I couldn’t give up, I wanted to play and be effective, but with the coach I didn’t feel like I was going to have the opportunity to do so. This had nothing to do with the club. I want to say that it was not about a lack of respect for the team or the fans.
“The negotiation was complicated, but Monchi gave me the green light to look for another club, even before Arsenal came.”
The former centre-back made 39 appearances during his time at Arsenal, out of which 32 of them came in his debut season at the north London club. He blames himself for failing to impress for the Premier League side.
“I had three difficult years, to be honest. At first, I played a lot, but I didn’t have a great preseason. In the end, if you don’t have very good physical shape in the English league, it is very complicated,” Squillaci explained.
“I played a lot, but after two or three months I was dead. I also lost confidence and it was complicated for me, but this is how it is. It was an experience. For me it is an impressive league and club. I also had good times there.”
The Frenchman, who’s currently a scout at OGC Nice, has insisted that Sevilla will have a difficult task when they face Mikel Arteta’s side later today.
