Arsenal forward Alex Iwobi came close to leaving the Emirates side on more than one occasion during his younger years.
Alex Iwobi has revealed Arsenal were close to releasing him during his time with the club's youth academy.
The Nigeria international joined the Arsenal academy at the tender age of nine and made his first-team debut in a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Sheffield Wednesday in October 2015.
Iwobi has since developed into an important member of Arsene Wenger's team, but he has made it clear things could very well have panned out differently.
"I was almost released at 14, again at 16 and just about got a professional contract after that," the 20-year-old forward told Standard Sport.