Eddie Nketiah has explained why he left boyhood club Arsenal during the summer transfer window, admitting that he needed to leave in order to get more minutes.

The forward joined Arsenal way back in 2015, before making his way through the youth ranks and into the first team within two years – making his debut in a Europa League clash with BATE Borisov.

Nketiah was largely a peripheral figure throughout his senior career at the Emirates Stadium however, being utilised in his final few years under Mikel Arteta as a bench option rather than a starter – 17 of his 27 Premier League appearances in 2023/24 came as a substitute.

With game time being incredibly hard to come by with the Gunners, Nketiah left the club during the summer, joining west London outfit Crystal Palace for a reported £30m.

Speaking to the Independent about his decision to move in the transfer window, Nketiah admitted that it was the need for more game time that led to him leaving Arsenal:

“I have a real belief in myself as a player, and I think I just needed to go somewhere I felt I would have opportunities to be on the pitch and improve,” said Nketiah.

“I know it’s not always going to click straight away, but everyone needs a platform to progress, trial and error on the pitch to learn. That was the main reason behind leaving Arsenal.

“Obviously Arsenal are challenging for the league and Palace will be in a different situation, but we’ve got a lot of talented players and there’s no reason why we shouldn’t have aspirations to keep climbing up the table.

“I think it’s a great project here. It’s a different project, but it’s definitely a great project that will allow me a platform to showcase my talents.”

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