Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi has said he almost didn’t sign for the Gunners last summer because he didn’t want to return to England after a failed Everton stint.

Between 2009 and 2012, Mustafi had a spell as an Everton player and had such a difficult experience he didn’t want to return to England. Mustafi made one sub appearances in Europe, then went three years without making a single first-team appearance, not even in cup competitions. Inevitably, he asked then-manager David Moyes to be moved on.

The German centre-back went on to spend three years at Sampdoria, and then three years at Valencia before signing for Arsenal last summer for £35m. “To be honest at the beginning I thought I was done with England because it was really frustrating [at Everton] and probably the worst time I had as a footballer,” Mustafi told Arsenal Player.

“I didn’t want to go there again but then when it came down to making a decision to stay or leave, I thought I would only leave Valencia if I had the opportunity to go to England. I was thankful that I had another opportunity to make a step forward by coming to Arsenal. For the rest of my life, I don’t want to be patient anymore.”

Mustafi is already having a better time in England with Arsenal than he did with Everton. Not only does he actually play every week now, he’s won the FA Cup. He had a good enough season to be the vice-captain for Germany at the Confederations Cup too. Arsenal will be hoping that Mustafi continues to go from strength to strength.

With the Londoners set to start the new season with a 3-4-2-1 formation, having reliable defenders at the back is essential. And with the likes of Laurent Koscielny, Shkodran Mustafi and Rob Holding having shone at the tail-end of 2016/17, Arsenal could enjoy a successful upcoming campaign.