Arsene Wenger still in shock, why Bendtner left Arsenal??
Sep 20, 2016 at 5:25 PM
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has expressed his surprise over Nicklas Bendtner’s move to Championship club Nottingham Forest. The Denmark international, who once claimed that he was on par with the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, spent nine years at the Emirates under Wenger. He scored 45 goals for Arsenal in 171 games between 2005 and 2014 and also had loan spells at Sunderland, Birmingham and Juventus during that period.
After that, he moved to Juventus followed by a move to Wolfsburg but the German outfit released him towards the end of last season due to several disciplinary issues and inconsistent performances. He finally signed for Nottingham Forest in a bid to revive his career.
Expressing his astonishment over the move, Wenger said: “It was a surprise to me that Nicklas signed for Nottingham Forest, but at some stage Nicklas needs to restart his career.”
The French tactician said that the striker will have a point to prove after his career has not panned out as planned.
“Of course he has a point to prove – he’s playing at a level where he is not used to. But he did start his career at this level at Birmingham City with Steve Bruce, where he did very well. Nicklas is focused enough to show he can fight again.
“You have to adapt and we are in a job when we have to show we are able to put our effort in everywhere and compete. Sometimes when you are a player of his quality, you just need an opportunity. We know his qualities and he is a top quality player, but he needs to play.
Bendtner has always been criticised for being over-confident. But Wenger denied those claims and said that the Dane has been perceived wrongly by the people.
“The perceptions people have of him is that he is over-confident but I don’t think so. He was sometimes impatient when he was with us. He was disappointed not to get the chance and you can understand that.
“I am not here to judge people. Sometimes you manage to get it and sometimes we do not find the key. Then you have to leave the key to someone else who has the potential to find it. Nicklas could explain much better than I can about his career.”
Well, the striker will get a chance to prove his former boss right when his side faces Arsenal in the EFL Cup tonight.