Bacary Sagna explains reasons for quitting Arsenal to join Man City

Bacary Sagna insists that money was no motivation in his transfer from Arsenal to Manchester City.

The right-back is set to officially join the Premier League champions in the coming days after rejecting offers of a new contract from the Gunners.

For people who think it’s for money, it’s not. I just wanted to change

Bacary Sagna

A wage increase has been touted as one of the reasons for Sagna moving to City – but the 31-year-old insists that he just needed a “fresh start”.

“I’m going to clear everything up because I keep reading that I did for money and I’m greedy,” Sagna said.

“What I want to say is I stayed with Arsenal with the same contract since 2008 and I never asked for more money.

“For people who think it’s for money, it’s not. I just wanted to change. I needed a boost in my career and I think it was about time.”

Sagna, who helped Arsenal win the FA Cup this season, held talks over a new deal with the north London club and conceded that he found it difficult to cope with the constant speculation surrounding his future.

“It was not an easy time because we were still involved in the FA Cup and it was hard to stay focused,” he added.

“I stayed focused on my team because I have a lot of respect for Arsenal. I believe Arsenal is a great team. I believe we have great quality and we won a trophy finally. It’s not even about that because Arsenal have a quality.

“It’s just that, personally, I wanted a boost. I needed to start from the bottom again.”