Former Arsenal winger Serge Gnabry has discussed the important role that his time in North London played in his development, after going on to shine with Bayern Munich.
The 24-year-old has gone from strength to strength since leaving Arsenal to return to Germany in 2016, excelling with Werder Bremen to earn a move to Bavaria.
He then impressed further during a loan stint with Hoffenheim and, following the departures of Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery in the summer, has become a star for Niko Kovac's side this term.
The highlight of his season so far came in the Champions League against Tottenham last week, where Gnabry four goals in a 7-2 humiliation of Mauricio Pochettino's side.
Those sorts of displays, added to his impressive return of nine goals in 10 caps for Germany, have led many Arsenal fans to consider Gnabry as one that got away.
It didn't quite work out for Gnabry in North London, with the writing on the wall appearing after a disappointing loan stint with West Brom in 2015-16 that saw him appear just once under the guidance of Tony Pulis.
While Arsenal were keen to extend his contract, Gnabry elected to seek new pastures and will certainly not regret that decision following his meteoric rise.
Although it didn't quite pan out for Gnabry in the Premier League, he holds no grudges and has revealed the importance of deciding to join Arsenal at the age of 16.
“At the beginning very good, I played at a young age and obliviously the second part wasn’t as good as I didn’t get enough game time, but overall the experience I had of going out of my comfort zone," he told BeIN Sports.
“At first you leave your comfort zone you step into a new world and that only makes you grow up a little bit faster, you have to adapt and go out of your comfort zone.”
