http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story/_/id/1142968/alex-song:-i-never-wanted-to-leave-arsenal?cc=4716Song: I never wanted to leave
August 26, 2012
By ESPN staff
New Barcelona signing Alex Song has laid bare his frustration at Arsenal's decision to repeatedly postpone his contract talks - but insists he never wanted to leave the club.
Alex Song Barcelona unveiling
GettyImagesAlex Song has signed a five-year contract at Barcelona
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Song made the move to Barcelona earlier this month for a reported fee of £15 million, with Gunners boss Arsene Wenger subsequently suggesting the Cameroon international had expressed a desire to move to Spain.
However, Song - who played 46 times for Arsenal last season - is adamant all he wanted was a new long-term deal at Emirates Stadium. He has also been frustrated by reports suggesting he took a lax attitude to training.
"I woke up and read those things in the paper and was really surprised and disappointed. I love Arsenal, I never wanted to leave," Song told the Sun on Sunday.
"I was ready to commit my future to the club. All I wanted were talks about a new contract but each time we were due to sit down, the club postponed it. I was fobbed off. I wanted a new five-year contract at Arsenal. In the end I got one - at Barcelona.
"I had been trying for eight months to start talking about a new long-term deal but the club kept postponing me all the time, saying 'You have three years left'. I hadn't talked about money, I just wanted to sit down and discuss a new deal - I wanted to commit my career to the club I loved.
"Then out of the blue, Barcelona came in for me. And, suddenly, I was wanted by the biggest club in the world and they wanted to give me a five-year deal."
