Prior to the Italy v France friendly match on Thursday, Monaco defender, Djibril Sidibe, was interviewed by l’equipe and explained why he turned Arsenal down.

When asked why he chose Monaco rather than Arsenal:

“There were multiple reasons, including playing time. Even if it was very tempting to sign because it is Arsenal. There are now many young (French) players who go abroad earlier and earlier. Do they have the necessary experience and maturity to face new life challenges in a different context? In a way, I think I was not ready for it.” 

It is a fair point, so many promising French players go abroad and fail to make the most of their talent, you could draw a long list of players who failed in the Premier League because of similar circumstances.

L’equipe mentioned Mathieu Debuchy’s situation where he ended up losing his place in the France squad for the Euros because he was not playing regularly for Arsenal (obviously due to Hector Bellerin’s excellent performances).

“I think it is the sum of multiple reasons [that influenced my decision not to join Arsenal].

I am young. I have a lot of things to learn. It was just not the right time, but I am getting closer to it. “

He had many options when he decided to leave Lille and chose Monaco.

“I wanted to do another full season, get as much experience as possible, and why not in a year or two play in the Premier League.”

So the door is not closed for him to move to England. You do wonder if he would come to be a back up for Bellerin though.