Arda Turan claims signing for Arsenal was an option - but only if Barcelona didn't want him

First choice: Turan wanted to join Barcelona ahead of Arsenal
JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images
Sam Long29 March 2016

Barcelona midfielder Arda Turan has joked that he could have signed for Arsenal last summer, but only if he had not played well enough to secure a move to the Camp Nou.

The 29-year-old was linked with a number of European clubs, including Liverpool and Arsenal, but eventually joined Barca from Atletico Madrid for an initial fee of £24m.

Turan had to wait until January to make his debut following the conclusion of the Catalan club's transfer ban but the Turkey international is adamant Barcelona were always his first choice.

"I felt that I would sign for Barca," he told Diari Ara.

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The midfielder went on to cheekily suggest a switch to north London would have been his second option if he failed to hit the heights required by Luis Enrique's side.

"In all honesty I used to think, 'If I play very well I will end up signing for Barca, because my style fits into this team. If I play well, I will end up at Arsenal'."

"Because of my style with the ball, playing simple, short, aggressively when needs be, but above all with high quality, I knew that I could make it at Barcelona," he insisted.

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IKIMAGES/AFP/Getty Images

Arsene Wenger's side met Barcelona in the last-16 of the Champions League in February but were outclassed by their Spanish counterparts.

Turan featured for just 13 minutes of the 5-1 aggregate victory over the Gunners as Barcelona advanced to the quarter-finals, where they will face the midfielder's former club Atletico.

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