Mohamed Elneny's agent has revealed that his client was close to leaving Arsenal in the January transfer window.
Elneny has just five months remaining on his current deal at the Emirates Stadium and his agent, Alan Nazmy, has claimed that head coach Mikel Arteta rejected offers that came in for the experienced midfielder last month.
“Mohamed Elneny doesn’t follow social media directly, but sometimes someone from his circle would send him news about him or criticism,” Nazmy told Mega FM 92.7, via Sport Witness.
“The player’s contract expires at the end of the current season, and Arteta rejected all offers that came for Elneny and asked that him to stay with the team.”
The 29-year-old enjoyed a productive Africa Cup of Nations over the last few weeks as Egypt reached the final before losing out to Senegal on penalties.
And Nazmy also admitted that Newcastle United were one of many clubs interested in the former Basel star's services over the winter window.
He added: “Newcastle United, Valencia, Lyon, and the largest known Turkish clubs, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, wanted to sign Elneny, but in the end Arteta and the Arsenal management refused.
“There are no official talks with Al Ahly [Egyptian club], and the question is illogical. Elneny still has the desire and ability to play in Europe. We only talk about that because Elneny played in Al Ahly’s academy.
“When asked about playing for Al Ahly, Elneny replied by saying that he still has the ability to play in Europe.
"But after four years his performance will differ, and maybe he would have retired. He doesn’t want people to see him perform poorly and he wants to retire in Europe.”
