Abou Diaby deserves a great Arsenal career, says Bacary Sagna

Bacary Sagna says injured-ravaged Arsenal midfielder Abou Diaby deserves a great career.

The France international made his return to action for the Gunners’s Under-21 side after spending more than a year on the sidelines with a knee injury.

When he’s at his best he can play as well as Patrick Vieira did and as good as many players did

Bacary Sagna

The 27-year-old midfielder has only managed to rack up 123 Premier League appearances during an eight-year career at the north London side due to injuries.

And his French team-mate Sagna hopes that Diaby can put his nightmare behind him and kick on to become an important player for Arsene Wenger’s side.

“He’s still young, that’s what is amazing because he had so many setbacks and bad news in his life but he’s still fighting, he’s still smiling and that’s what I admire about him,” Sagna told Arsenal’s website.

“He always wants to give the maximum, he always stays positive and I think that’s why he’s back today.

“To me he is one of the best in the world [when he is fit]. When he’s at his best he can play as well as Patrick Vieira did and as good as many players did. He can be useful for the team and he can be decisive.

“To be honest I was shocked the day he got injured [at Swansea last season] because to me he deserves to have a great career. He’s a great player with great skill and ability but he got injured a lot.

“That’s life and I think he is strong enough to come back to his best and work hard, that’s what he’s done until now and I’m glad to see him back. He played with the reserves and he is training with us so I’m looking forward to him playing with us.”