The media have been claiming that Joel Campbell is set to be released by Arsenal this summer but the forward has other plans.

The Costa Rican released a statement on his official website on Monday contradicting claims that he was leaving north London. In fact, after having a ‘good holiday’, the 24-year-old seems hungrier than ever to prove himself:

“I have had a good holiday and now I am happy to train, to return strong, to prepare myself well in this preseason for the new campaign for which I have high expectations and I will fight with everything to have the opportunity to play and to show what I can give.

“Last season was my first full season with the team from start to finish and to me it was a very productive time, I played 30 games and that was very important for me and made me mature a lot. I could show what I’m made of, and at last the team and the fans were happy with what I have done.”

After battling a work permit for most of his time as an ‘Arsenal player’, when he got given a chance to show what he’s made of in the first team last season, he took the opportunity with both hands. Although he only made 19 Premier League appearances, he scored three goals and assisted three in this time. His work rate was virtually unrivaled and he injected a real energy into the team.

Where he went after that…we don’t know. He was on the bench a lot but the rest of the time we suspect he was abducted by aliens.

If you need your memory jogging, here are his highlights below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmU0LSdx7yY