Julio Pleguezuelo says he turned down the option to leave over the summer, and even though he still has offers from Spain, he doesn’t want to go back right now.
Having spent much of the last two seasons on loan, this summer was a turning point for Pleguezuelo. He was entering the final year of his Arsenal contract, and he had to decide whether to stick around and hope he got a first-team chance or to move on permanently.
“I had options to go out in the summer, but I wanted to stay here,” Pleguezuelo told Marca. “The first step I have already made with this debut, now what I want is to continue having opportunities in the first team. I do not want to be overwhelmed either, I only think about my work and training.”
When pressed by the Spanish outlet about a possible return to his home country, the Arsenal defender revealed that he does indeed have offers from Spain. However, for the time being, he wants to remain in England, and he’s hoping that will be with the Gunners.
“I’m waiting to see how everything happens, I have to talk to my agent,” he said. “My goal is to stay at Arsenal, I would like to continue and, if it is not here, then in England. I have offers in Spain, but at the moment it’s not my idea to go back.”
To get a new contract with Arsenal, Pleguezuelo knows he needs to keep striving for more first-team opportunities this season. He admits that it won’t be easy to get in the team in the Premier League and Europa League, but he thought the same about the League Cup before his debut.
“It’s difficult, but I also saw it difficult to play the Cup. I do not have to lower my arms. If I continue in this line, striving to the fullest, I will have the opportunity. I’m not going to give up.
“There is always a lot of competition, they (Sokratis, Koscielny, Mustafi and Holding) are experienced players who have a lot of quality. I do not see them as enemies, just the opposite. For my part, what I will do is continue to give the coach reasons to [pick me], and when he trusts me, be prepared.”
Hopefully, Pleguezuelo gets chances at the end of the Europa League group stage, at least. If he impresses in those games, we’ll see what the next steps are from there.