According to Metro, former Arsenal striker Gervinho has accused manager Arsene Wenger of destroying his confidence after the Frenchman consistently placed the Ivorian on the bench during the latter stages of his stint at the Emirates Stadium.

Gervinho arrived at Arsenal in 2011 from Lille for a fee of £10.8 million, and settled into the starting eleven as he offered something different in the side. However, his style of play remained consistent throughout his first season, and the Premier League oppositions began reading his game well. This led to defences lining up to stop the attacker’s predictable game, and ultimately led to him being pushed onto the bench. Towards the end of last season, Gervinho was playing in the reserve squad, and had lost all hope of playing for the senior squad. Finally, he played a total of 46 league games for the club, scoring 9 goals in the process.

The 26-year old then made the switch to Italy, where AS Roma offered him a starting eleven berth. Gervinho has played 17 matches so far this season scoring 5 goals. Sadly the forward was often a frustration to Gooners when he played for Arsenal but perhaps all he needed was the belief of his manager and a good run in the side to build his confidence.