He says he could’ve played 100 games for Arsenal – but Arsene Wenger sold him before he made his debut

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Arsenal have had countless legends making hundreds of appearances for the football club, but one ex-academy star believes he should’ve played at least 100 times for them.

Arsenal’s academy has produced plenty of brilliant footballers over the years, with Tony Adams and Ashley Cole breaking through the ranks to achieve greatness.

However, not everybody who participates in the academy will make it to the top level, as there are only limited spaces available in the first team.

Footballers often learn that the hard way, and Arsene Wenger made plenty of tough calls throughout his career.

Jay Bothroyd thought he’d make 100 Arsenal appearances, but he made none

Jay Bothroyd is one of many footballers who was involved at a top-level Premier League side, but never quite made the grade, ultimately dropping down a level to get regular game time.

However, the striker revealed to The Joy of Football podcast that he believed in himself at the time, and thought he would go on to play 100 times for Arsenal due to having a good connection with Arsene Wenger.

“I genuinely think I would have played, I would have played at least, I reckon I would have played about 100 games for Arsenal.

“Wenger loved me as a player. And he was one of those people that I think at the time, when I used to go to training, he was always that person that he would go out of his way to come and speak to me and put his arm around me. So I know that he wanted to kind of, I was one of those players that he wanted to push through and bring through.

“And I felt, I just felt like looking back at it now, if I hadn’t have thrown my shirt (in a youth game), I definitely would’ve played for Arsenal for years. Because I think I would have been, when you’re, I would have submerged myself in that team, right, with those kinds of players. When you’re around the Bergkamps and the Henrys every day, you can’t help but improve.

“Again, it just rubs off on you. You start learning from other people. You start, you know.

“But you’ve got to get games again. In that place. Yeah, and I’m not saying I would have been a regular, but I would’ve been in the squad because there were players who weren’t better than me who were in the squad.”

How did Jay Bothroyd’s career go post-Arsenal?

Despite Bothroyd’s close relationship with Wenger, the former Arsenal manager opted to let him leave the football club without ever playing him for the first team.

Bothroyd joined Coventry City, where he made his first-team debut. He then went on to have a respectable career in the game, playing for the likes of Wolves, Cardiff City, and QPR.

He primarily played in the Championship, having made 189 appearances in the division, but he also played 62 times in the Premier League, where he scored six goals.

Bothroyd also enjoyed a spell in Japan, where he played for various teams. He was the top goalscorer in the J2 League during the 2015 campaign, helping Jubilo Iwata gain promotion in the process.