Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has slammed new Liverpool signing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain after stating that it was more painful to let Kieran Gibbs leave the club than watching ‘The Ox’ go through the exit door.
According to the Liverpool Echo, the England international refused to sign a new contract with the Gunners before making a £40m switch to Anfield, turning down the chance to join Chelsea.
Wenger admitted it was hard to see an academy graduate leave the Emirates.
He stated:
“Overall it’s true that with Gibbs (it hurt) more than Chamberlain because he had been educated at Arsenal from the age of 10.”
The 27-year-old, who has ten England caps to his name, moved to West Brom during the summer after making 226 appearances since his first team debut in 2008, winning three FA Cups in that time.
Oxlade-Chamberlain has had an under-par start to his Liverpool career, losing 5-0 to Manchester City before losing to Leicester 2-0 in the League Cup in his full debut.
However, he did feature in the side’s 3-2 win over Leicester on Saturday as Liverpool moved into the top five.