I left Arsenal because they said I was too fat - but I'm now scoring goals for fun around Europe

There have been a number of young players to have left Arsenal and become successes elsewhere. It happens everywhere, players just do not quite fulfil their potential with a club, but go on to bigger and better things as they get older.

That can be said for Donyell Malen. The 25-year-old Dutchman started out at Ajax's academy — where many young Dutch players begin their journeys, before moving to Arsenal in 2015, aged 16.

Malen spent two years in the Arsenal youth setup, scoring in both the quarter-final and semi-final of the FA Youth Cup. He was also taken on the club's pre-season tour of Australia in 2017, but that was to be his final involvement with the Gunners.

Malen was sold to PSV that summer, with whom he would go on to win the Eredivisie title the following season, although he only made four appearances. The next season would be his breakthrough, playing 42 times and scoring 11 goals and delivering five assists.

An impressive 17 goals and nine assists in 25 appearances in 2019/20 and then 27 goals and 10 assists in 2020/21 earned him a move to Borussia Dortmund. He has amassed 23 goals and 14 assists in 73 Bundesliga appearances for the Black & Yellow.

It has been a fine career to date for the forward and things could have been so different had he stayed in north London. Speaking to Algemeen Dagblad in 2019, Malen revealed the bizarre reason why he left Arsenal two year prior.

I joined Arsenal because Man City wouldn't give me a flat after Patrick Vieira chat

I still have a future at Arsenal and my performance against Man Utd shows I can make my mark

Talking about then head of youth development Andries Jonker he said: «I heard him say that I came in too fat. That surprised me.

»They had already been working at