Rejecting Real Madrid and signing for Arsenal was best decision in my life, proclaims Lauren

The then 23-year-old finished the 1999/00 season in La Liga as one of the best midfielders and it saw quite a few sides chase after his signature. But Lauren instead opted to sign for Arsenal and over the next seven years, the right-back would become one of the best in his position. It also saw a change in position as then Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger transformed the winger into a full-back and the Cameroonian would become a key part of the Invincibles team that won the 2001/02 and the 2003/04 Premier league titles.

Not only that, the side won three FA Cups and the full-back also won an Olympic gold medal and two Africa Cup of Nations with Cameroon. And in an interview with the Guardian, the 43-year-old admitted that rejecting Real Madrid and Roma for Arsenal was the best decision he ever made in his life. Lauren also added that Arsene Wenger and David Dein’s attitude towards him was what made him sign for the Gunners instead of Madrid.

“No doubt, that was the best decision I took in my life. Playing with players like Bergkamp, Henry, Vieira, Lehmann. Being at an institution like Arsenal. The English philosophy. The way they treat you. The best manager a young player can have. And the chance to win every trophy there is. I would never have imagined it back in Seville,” Lauren told the Guardian.

“Arsenal also offered a better contract and better opportunities for a young player, light years from Madrid’s offer. It was very clear from the start, in the way Dein and Wenger acted. It wasn’t: ‘Come to the club [offices].’ No, it was: ‘Come to my home, with my family. Join us.’ In negotiations normally everyone sits there all serious, in suit and tie, but they were totally different. Dein’s treatment man-to-man was fantastic. And Wenger’s sitting there with that human warmth, that approachability. It immediately feels different," he continued.

The heroes of that Arsenal Invincibles side were the likes of Patrick Viera, Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp but the superstar had to be Henry. The Frenchman was at his very best during his spell with the Gunners and Lauren admitted it was because the striker had a single-minded focus to be the best “every single day of his life”. He also added that the entire team was overly competitive with them often getting into arguments and confrontations.

“There was always argument after argument: Freddie with this guy, Martin with that guy, me with someone else. Bergkamp was a genius but he was also incredibly competitive. That’s why we won. Why did Henry become Arsenal’s all-time top scorer? Talent? Because he was really good and a great athlete? No. Because he wanted to be the best every single day of his life. He never ducked a game, never said ‘I’ve got a knock’. The session finished and he’d stay to take shots, practice diagonal runs. On the bus, Henry, me, Edu and Vieira played cards and Henry got angry if he lost.

“You can laugh but it was like that. If you didn’t give him the ball, if he didn’t score, he would get mad. It was horrific. I’ve had confrontations with Henry and Vieira, Vieira with Martin Keown, Keown with Henry, Henry with Ljungberg, everyone. There was one at Riazor against Deportivo when Henry stopped and raised his arms at me. Bloody hell. You should have seen our training sessions. It’s a good job journalists weren’t there; it would have been horrible,” he added.