Arsène Wenger wanted to sign Neymar in 2011 but ended up sticking with Gervinho after being put off by his £40m asking price.

Before he signed for Barcelona, Neymar was already one of the most highly-rated young players in the world. At the age of 19, he had drawn interest from Real Madrid, Barcelona and Chelsea, among others, and at the time Arsène made no secret of his interest in the player.

As reported by The Sun via ESPN, he said in 2011: “If I had the money today, I’d put it on Neymar. You can’t say that Neymar is Pele as he had won the World Cup by the age of 17. He has the potential to be one of the future great strikers.”

Unfortunately, Arsène never found the £40m that was apparently required to secure Neymar’s transfer. The Brazilian remained with Santos until 2013, when Barcelona eventually did manage to sign him.

Now that he looks to be on the verge of a world record £198m transfer to Paris Saint-Germain, that £40m would have been a solid investment.

Instead of having Neymar in their attack, Arsenal stuck with Gervinho, who had joined the Gunners months previously. At the time Gervinho seemed like a solid option, contributing to 26 goals in 35 league appearances for Lille in 2010/11. But he never replicated this form for the Londoners.

In 2011/12, Gervinho scored four goals and added seven assists in his 37 Arsenal appearances. Meanwhile, Neymar scored 24 and assisted 10 times in 33 games for Santos.

It doesn’t look any better now, with Neymar considered one of the best players in the world, while Gervinho picks up limited minutes in China.

You can’t say that Arsène wasn’t interested in Neymar, and it’s true the Gunners had financial difficulties at the time. Supporters will hope that the next time a player like Neymar comes along, Arsenal aren’t held up by a fee like this.