I won a Premier League medal with Arsenal - but something didn't feel right

Giovanni van Bronckhorst put together a mightily impressive CV during his career as a player, but the ex-Arsenal man admits his three-year spell in north London was bittersweet. van Bronckhorst, 49, got his hands on a Premier League winner's medal with the Gunners — yet things might have been even better still.

Injuries played a key part in his Arsenal story after the Dutchman was signed for £8million — as a replacement for Emmanuel Petit upon his move to Barcelona — before later heading to the famous Camp Nou himself. In between, he had to learn and master a new position to make his mark for club and country.

«I was signed by Arsene Wenger as a midfielder,» said Van Bronckhorst in an interview for FourFourTwo magazine. The ex-Rangers star totted-up just 42 games in the Premier League during his time with the club.

England manager Gareth Southgate reveals Edu phone call after Ben White decision

Gabriel Jesus goes viral with brilliant Arsenal moment before Champions League win

«But when I joined I wasn't quite fit. I got injured at Rangers near the end of the 2000/2001 season.»

He continued: «Initially the plan was actually to go to Chelsea. With Arsenal's help, I trained by myself in southern France that summer and after several months I began to prove myself, but then I suffered a knee injury. It put me out for seven months. I received a Premier League medal, but it feels strange to be a champion when you've been out injured for so long.»

After touching down in the Premier League — in 2001 — and spending three years in north London, Van Bronckhorst signed for Barcelona in 2007, and finished off his career at the place where it all began — Feyenoord. He progressed through the ranks there and also played for RKC Waalwijk