Eddie Nketiah says it was always 50:50 as to whether he would join Bristol City in January.
The young striker was a long-term target of the Robins, dating back to last summer when he rejected them in favour of a move to Leeds United.
Yet he was recalled from Elland Road in January due to a lack of game time, with the Robins believed to have been leading a highly-publicised chase to take him on loan for the second half of the season.
A move to City was even inadvertently announced on Arsenal's website, only for Gunners boss Mikel Arteta to opt to keep Nketiah at the Emirates after some impressive performances in training.
The striker says he is grateful for the opportunity he has been given by his manager.
"He was a bit 50:50 on letting me go anyway and I was 50:50 as well," Nketiah told the Mirror."He likes this mentality and obviously the quality I have, I try to showcase that.
"I’m grateful he’s given me the opportunity he has and I just want to keep learning. I just want to keep learning of him, make sure my mentality is right each day and keep improving.
"I believe in God, I'm a very religious person so I know my time will come so it is just about treating each day as it comes, not letting your head get down if you don't get minutes and proving each day that you deserve to play and work hard for the chance so when you get it you can take it.
"Mikel has shown that if you do well he will continue to reward you with the opportunity and that is all you can ask as a player."
Despite a lack of game time at Elland Road, Nketiah says his time out on loan proved to be beneficial.
"My Leeds experience was good for me, I learned as a player," he said. "I might not have played as much as I want but I had good moments when I was there when I came on and played.
"If you check my minutes to goal ratio it’s quite good but obviously it’s just how things are. It’s a very good environment to be in, it’s a very demanding coach and I learned a lot.
"You have to learn about yourself and take each opportunity as it comes. I’m here playing at Arsenal, which is a dream."
