Former Arsenal defender Jakub Kivioglu has opened up about how he ended up leaving the Emirates Stadium for Porto this summer.
The Poland international is currently on loan at Porto, but is unlikely to return to Arsenal as there is a buyout obligation in his contract.
See below for Fabrizio Romano’s post on X regarding Kivior’s summer transfer. This article explains that although it was a loan for this season, there is an obligation to buy it out at the end of the season…
Kivior was a solid player for Arsenal, but it appears the club made the right decision in the end to let him go as they pushed for an away transfer.
Jakub Kivioglu explains how he decided to leave Arsenal
Regarding his current departure, Kivior explained that Mikel Arteta did not ask him to be loaned or sold, but that it was his decision to leave.
However, the 25-year-old faces significant competition for a place in Arsenal’s defense and believes his chances of breaking into the squad ahead of William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães are slim.
“The club didn’t want to let me go and it took a long time to agree to the transfer,” Kivior told TVP Sport.
“I was valued there. No one wanted to kick me out. Arteta also didn’t want me to go to Portugal, so I never felt unwanted.”
“The decision to leave was completely my decision. I wanted to play, but the chances were small because Gabriel and Saliba were in front of me.
“I convinced him (Arteta) myself. I went to talk to him and explained how I saw everything. He understood my ambitions and my aspirations.”
Jakub Kiviol talks about choosing to move to Porto
Kivior also spoke about how happy he was to move to Porto, even though the Portuguese league is generally considered to be weaker than the English Premier League.
Porto also clearly tried hard to persuade Kivior to join, and did so.
“It was FC Porto who convinced me. At one point they called me every day. Even after several rejections from Arsenal, they fought hard and never gave up,” Kivior said.
“I had a lot of offers, but when I saw Jan Bednarek come in I said to myself, hopefully it will be great, and it really is.
“FC Porto and Arsenal have a lot in common: great clubs, great ambitions, great fans and stadiums and strong traditions.
“It wasn’t difficult to say goodbye to London, especially given the sporting opportunities.”