Arsene Wenger allowed Lukas Podolski to leave on loan because he is overstocked with attacking players.
The Germany international has joined Inter Milan for the rest of the season, and made his debut in the Italian side’s 1-1 draw with Juventus on Tuesday.
Wenger revealed that Roberto Mancini’s side do not have an option to buy the forward, but hopes Podolski’s loan spell will be a positive experience.
"It’s nothing to do with his quality; it’s just down to the fact that we had too many players in the same area"
Arsene Wenger
“He didn’t get enough opportunities to play - because I knew that, I gave him a chance to go,” the Arsenal manager said.
“Why? Because we have many players who can play in these positions and at the end of the day only 11 can start. When a player of his quality doesn’t get enough games, at some stage too much competition is detrimental to the confidence of the players and their positivity.
“You need the right number and we had too many players in this area. It’s nothing to do with his quality; it’s just down to the fact that we had too many players in the same area.”
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