‘Arsenal signed me to replace Thierry Henry – then Arsene Wenger forced me out’

Emmanuel Adebayor has opened up about his departure from Arsenal and revealed Arsene Wenger banished him from the training ground after deeming him surplus to requirements.

The former Togo international looked set for a glittering career in north London having signed from Monaco and initially shown the potential to be able to fill the boots of Thierry Henry.

Adebayor ended the 2007/08 season with 30 goals in all competitions as Arsenal only narrowly missed out on the Premier League title and were moments away from reaching the last four of the Champions League.

However, a bitter contract wrangle ensued the next summer as several top European clubs courted Adebayor.

And although he ultimately signed a new deal on improved wages, his relationship with Wenger never recovered and the forward was let go the following summer, ultimately joining Premier League rivals Manchester City.

Reflecting back on his acrimonious departure, Adebayor admitted he was taken aback by Wenger’s ‘harsh’ decision to banish him from the first team at such short notice.

‘I had a great season in 2008, I had everyone calling me, he said in an interview with Optus Sport.

‘Milan, when Milan was great with Kaka, Gattuso, Maldini and Shevchenko, but I said I wasn’t going, I’m staying with Arsenal.

‘I went on holiday but when I came back to the club I had a meeting with the boss, and he said ‘I don’t need you any more.’ And I was like ‘wow’, what am I going to do?

‘I wanted a chance to fight for my place and he said no. He said if I stayed I’d not be in the squad for the league, not in the squad for the Champions League or the cup. I thought, ‘ok, this is harsh’.

‘I decided to try and give it a chance to force my way back in, but I came back the next day to the training ground and they blocked the gate.

‘I wasn’t allowed to enter the Arsenal training ground facility and that’s when I realised it was over.’

Having left Arsenal with a point to prove, Adebayor took great pleasure in scoring against the Gunners when they faced City at the Etihad Stadium just four games after his switch.

And the striker further enraged Arsenal fans after the goal when he ran the length of the pitch to celebrate in front of the away fans, an act which earned him a £25,000 fine and a two-match suspended ban from the Football Association.

Reflecting back on the celebration, Adebayor insisted that he had no regrets and said it was merely a reaction to the abuse hurled at him by Arsenal fans prior and during the match.

‘When we get to the stadium…we’re walking across the pitch, Arsenal fans are already at the stadium singing that famous song, ‘Adebayor, Adebayor, give him the ball and he will score’ but this time around I realise the song is different but I couldn’t hear what they were saying properly,’ he said.

‘So as we went to the restaurant and as we were eating Micah Richards spoke to me. He brought the song up and obviously the newest version was attacking my parents, my mother and my father.

‘At that moment, I was like you can insult me as you want but not my parents, not those who gave me a chance to be who I am, not those who gave me a chance to represent your club and score goals for your club. 

‘So when I came out, inside I was boiling and my spirit went up and I had to do something. Arsenal fans were just singing that song, abusing my parents and when I scored that goal, for me it is one of deliberation. I had to give something back.

‘A lot of people ask me, do I regret it? No, of course not. I will never regret that celebration because of where the anger came from. I think God chose me to score that goal to show them.’

After two years at City, Adebayor had spells at several clubs, including Real Madrid, Tottenham and Istanbul Basaksehir, before retiring from professional football in March 2023.

The striker ended his career with an impressive 205 goals in 591 appearances, including a record of 62 goals in 142 matches whilst at Arsenal.

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