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Mathieu Flamini

FORMER Arsenal midfielder Mathieu Flamini has rubbished suggestions from Arsene Wenger that he quit for AC Milan for financial reasons.

"I've enormous respect for Arsene Wenger. But I did not leave for the money," Flamini told The Sun. "It is not true. I don't want to comment about what he said or how I felt when I read his comments.

"But I will say I'm leaving for Milan because it's one of the biggest clubs in the world - with millions of fans everywhere, an enormous history and one of the biggest trophy cabinets in the world.

"Milan are in the Champions League final every couple of years. Arsenal are a big club too and they have ambition.

"But I chose to go to Milan. If you think it was easy for me to leave Arsenal you couldn't be more wrong.

"Until the last moment I couldn't make my mind up.

"It breaks your heart to see all these people wanting you to stay. Even on the last day after the Everton game they were not sure I was going to leave because even I was not sure. Then after I passed my medical at Milan I went to see Arsene. It was emotional but he accepted my decision.

"Those who say I left for the money should think that I signed as a 20-year-old and I left with the same salary I had when I came to Arsenal.

"If money was the reason I played for Arsenal, then why did I play for four years with the same contract?"

He added: "I had the chance to go to some of the biggest clubs in Europe. Even if I stayed at Arsenal I'd still have earned a lot of money.

"I took my decision based on what I wanted for the future. Milan is the most decorated club in the world, along with Real Madrid.

"I'm half-Italian and it was an opportunity to go back to my roots. My father Roland is the proudest person in the world that I've finally gone to Italy."

8:15am Saturday 17th May 2008

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