Nicklas Bendtner, who enjoyed an unproductive loan spell at Juventus last season, was linked with a permanent move away from the Emirates Stadium in the summer, but Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger blocked a move after being unable to secure an alternative replacement.
Prior to last season, he had made a loan move to Sunderland where he scored 8 goals in 30 appearances for the Black Cats. It was clear that Wenger had lost his faith in Bendtner, after allowing him to be away from the club on loan for the past two seasons.
However, with Wenger unable to bring Demba Ba on loan on transfer deadline day from fellow London club Chelsea, Bendtner was forced to stay with the Gunners as they were left short of strikers. The Dane appeared in his first Premier League match of the season after more than two years, when he came on as a 85th minute substitute in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with West Brom.
It has been a contrasting second stint for Bendtner, as he shot to fame with impressive performances earlier on in his career at the Emirates.
In fact, the confident striker at the time sent the media world into frenzy after claiming he was the best striker in the world. However, following mixed seasons since then, the forward has now claimed that he had been misquoted by the media.
According to Metro, he said, “I basically said that I think that anybody who plays football in the world would love to be the best. I think that’s a normal statement and that got [changed] to me saying that I was the best player in the world.”
He added, “I don’t know where that came from. I still listen to it now and again and still see it. If people want to believe that, then that’s that. I have changed and learned a lot.”
The 25-year-old has claimed that he is a changed man after he became a father. He said, “First of all, I had a baby, which changed me a lot. I think a lot of people say that you have babies and they change you but for me I could really feel a big difference to my life.”
He added, “If people can’t accept that sometimes you’re young and make mistakes and move on, that’s not up to me. I try to do my best and that’s basically all I can do for my family and my friends and everyone around the club.”
Let’s hope Bendtner’s new-found maturity means his performances on the pitch improve.