Robert Pires will be pulling on our famous red shirt once more when our legends host Real Madrid this weekend, but he was tricked into wearing white back in 2000.
Then at Marseille, Pires had Madrid, Juventus and us fighting for the Frenchman’s signature when a photograph emerged of him wearing a Los Blancos shirt in the Spanish media.
“One day, I met the Spanish journalists and I was wearing the Madrid shirt,” he told Arsenal Player. “Some journalists took the picture of me because the people in Spain thought it would be nice as they thought I was signing for Real Madrid.
“The problem was that maybe two or three days after the picture, I called Arsène Wenger and he changed my mind. That’s why I signed for Arsenal and it was the best decision I ever made.
“For me, the first destination was Madrid because Madrid is, even now, one of the best clubs in the world. Some people, after my decision, especially in my family, told me I was crazy because Madrid is the best club in the world.
“I said, ‘Yeah, maybe’ but I called Arsène Wenger, talked a lot with him and he changed my mind. That’s why I signed for Arsenal in 2000. It was a great decision.”
Pires will captain our legends side on Saturday - and tickets are still available to purchase here
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