The corner flag will display the Arsenal logo during UEFA Champions League matches. (Photo: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
Former Arsenal player Jay Emmanuel Thomas was jailed for four years after attempting to smuggle £600,000 of cannabis into the UK.
The former Arsenal genius was arrested in September when it was discovered to be carrying 60 kg of cannabis by a border officer.
The player tricked his girlfriend into carrying drugs
Along with Emmanuel Thomas, his girlfriend, Yasmin Piotrovka, was also caught by a border officer. The report alleges that the 34-year-old tricked his girlfriend and her friend Rosie Roland into carrying a vacuum in a suitcase packed with cannabis.
The women were told they were carrying money, so both walked freely, but the former Arsenal genius would now spend four years in prison. The 34-year-old was highly praised by former Arsenal manager and club legend Arsene Wenger. He was considered one of the club’s best young talents during that time, and was a key player for Arsenal when he won the FA Youth Cup in 2009.
Jay Emmanuel Thomas was a huge talent
Wenger described the players as people with large talent and excellent qualities. However, he was unable to fulfill his potential, so import claims shamed him as a former professional soccer player.
“He has the build you dream of,” Wenger once said. “When his fitness is right, Jay will not only be a good player, but also a great player. One thing is for sure. He can score goals. That’s a huge talent you can’t give to people. His right foot, his left foot, he’s incredible in front of the goal.”
After leaving Arsenal, the player went to the town of Ipswich, then to Bristol. Emmanuel Thomas also played for clubs such as the Queens Park Rangers, Milton Keynes Don, Gillingham, Rayong, Livingston, Aberdeen, India’s Jamshedpool and Kidderminster Harriers.
The player joined Greenoc Morton last July, but his professional football career appears to be far more than ever.