Robin Van Persie reveals how Arsenal tried to convince him not leave despite his trophy ambition

Robin van Persie has opened up on what happened during  his final days at Arsenal The Dutch international also revealed how the club attempted to persuade him to stay despite his pursuit to win a trophy. 

Speaking this week to Dutch presenter Kaj Gorgels on his official YouTube channel, Van Persie admitted that the club wanted him to stay but he felt they weren't competitive enough. 

Van Persie said: 'At Arsenal, I didn’t feel like we were on the level to compete.

'One day, The chairman of Arsenal showed me how healthy the club was by showing me their positive numbers.

'I told him: "I don’t give a s*** about these numbers, I want to lift the Premier League trophy."

Peter Hill-Wood was the chairman of Arsenal during Van Persie's spell with the club, before he stepped down and was replaced by Sir Chips Keswick in 2013.

Van Persie even admitted he could have moved to Juventus when he left the Emirates but the president at the time was reluctant to allow him join Juventus. 

'We felt it would be best to leave for a club outside of England, the deal with Juventus was closed. But the chairman of Arsenal was stubborn towards Juventus,' he revealed.

'I told him that my other two other options were Manchester United or Manchester City, so it’s his own risk."

'My departure from Arsenal to Manchester United is still a sensitive topic in England.

'But I wanted to win, I just wanted to win. And I had to take a risk for that,' Van Persie added.

Van Persie won the Premier League title in 2013 as well as the Community Shield with Manchester United. 

With Arsenal Van Persie won the FA Cup, the Community Shield and reached the Champions League final with the club in 2006, losing to Barcelona in the final.