Former Newcastle United midfielder Yohan Cabaye has lifted the lid on how close he came to joining Arsenal and why he felt he had to go on strike after a move broke down. Arsene Wenger's side made a £10million bid for the French playmaker on the eve of the Magpies Premier League curtain raiser against Manchester City in 2013.
Then Newcastle boss Alan Pardew spoke out about the disrespectful approach from the Gunners. Cabaye was one of the standout performers during his time in a black and white shirt, helping the Magpies reach the Europa League Quarter-Final where they were knocked out of the competition by Benfica.
"It was quite close," Cabaye told Four Four Two when asked about a move to Arsene Wenger's side. "Arsenal put a bid on the table. The deal [when I signed for Newcastle] was, ‘OK, you come and we’ll see how you adapt.
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"The English market can be quick, and if there’s something, we’ll sit and have a chat’. So, OK, that’s fine. It was the first time I was leaving a club, moving from Lille to Newcastle, so I didn’t know about transfers.
"The fact is, the first season was really good and after that there was Euro 2012, of course, which went well for me. Then there was Arsenal’s interest, and what I didn’t understand was that the club closed the door on it – they didn’t want to have a discussion."
Cabaye was left disappointed by Newcastle's refusal to enter negotiations with Arsenal. He added:"I asked why, and the answer failed to convince me. I asked them to speak [with Arsenal] and try to come up with a better solution – if there’s no solution, I can understand that, and I’m happy at Newcastle.
"But I wanted to play for a club with that standard, with all due respect to Newcastle. In the end, they didn’t want to, and that’s life. That was their choice."
Cabaye was left out of the squad to face Man City and then the French international went on strike, missing the clash with West Ham in an attempt to force a move. He admits he could have handled things differently but points out his performance levels didn't drop.
"I felt that someone lied to me.," he said. "It [going on strike] was a way to express my disagreement – but today, of course, I can say that it wasn’t the right way. After that, I think I showed to everyone that I was fully committed to Newcastle, 100 per cent, and there weren’t any problems at all."
Cabaye would eventually seal a move to PSG for an undisclosed fee, winning two Ligue 1 titles, the French League Cup twice and the Coup de France.
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