Arsenal and Tottenham share a big rivalry in England.
The North London Derby is among the biggest spectacles of the season, and the Gunners have had the upper hand more times than Spurs.
Arsenal have almost always been the bigger side, so players, naturally, prefer moving to the red side of North London over the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
That was the case for one player in 2005, but a deal didn’t materialise.
Jermaine Jenas says he wanted to join Arsenal before Tottenham signed him
Jermaine Jenas played for five different clubs in a career spanning over a decade.
The Englishman started off at Nottingham Forest and made his senior debut for the club. Then, he moved to Newcastle United, for whom he played 152 times in three seasons.
In the summer of 2005, Jenas wanted to leave St James’ Park, and there was a fair bit of interest in him in that window.
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The midfielder, at one point, believed he was on his way to Arsenal and wanted the move as well.
However, Arsene Wenger’s side decided against it, and Jenas ended up signing for the Gunners’ fierce rivals, Tottenham, instead.
Speaking on the Beast Mode On podcast, Jenas said: “When I left Newcastle, I thought I was going to Arsenal, if I’m honest with you. That kind of didn’t transpire, and I was like, ‘Look, I need to get out,’ and I ended up at Tottenham.
“Me and the Tottenham fans got off to a slow start because of that, because in their minds, they were like: ‘You wanted to go to Arsenal and now you’re here.'”
“You did want to go to Arsenal, though?” Adebayo Akinfenwa asked Jenas.
He replied: “I did, yeah. I mean, Arsene Wenger was there. He was like the Pep Guardiola of football at that time. If you wanted to go to Harvard and gain a better education, Arsene Wenger and Arsenal were where it was at as a young player.”
Arsene Wenger once explained why Arsenal didn’t sign Jermaine Jenas
Arsenal’s interest in Jenas back in 2005 was genuine.
Wenger admitted in a press conference at the time that he was indeed a fan of the midfielder, but Graeme Souness’ demands at Newcastle forced Arsenal to abandon their pursuit.
“I like Jenas, but I’m not intent on any player at the moment,” Wenger said in 2005, as per World Soccer.
“When I heard Graeme Souness’ statement a few weeks ago, it was discouraging. He spoke in the region of £20 million – we are not interested at that price.”
Jenas later revealed that Wenger told him that he should’ve signed him even before he went to Newcastle.
The Frenchman apparently even admitted that not making a move for him was a mistake.