Smith Rowe: Tottenham wanted me, but I'm an Arsenal fan
Martin Macdonald
- 10 Nov 2021 10:08 GMT
- 5 min read
Arsenal attacking midfielder Emile Smith Rowe has revealed that Tottenham attempted to sign him a few years ago.
Over the past couple of seasons, Smith Rowe has developed into one of Arsenal's key players, while his status as an academy product makes him a hugely popular figure among the Emirates faithful.
He is in particularly good form at the moment and, thanks to an injury to Marcus Rashford, has been called up to the senior England squad for the first time in his career.
Things could have been very different though, as Smith Rowe recalled to the Guardian how he had a trial at Chelsea and was also courted by Tottenham.
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"I went in for about three or four weeks but, at the time, I was quite small, really skinny and just kept getting pushed off the balI," he said of a trial at Chelsea.
"I wasn’t getting involved and touching the ball enough. That’s what it felt like, why I didn’t get in.
"Tottenham wanted me when I was 15 or 16 but, as an Arsenal fan, I was never interested.
"I joined Arsenal at 10 and I was determined to make the grade at my club."
The key behind Smith Rowe's improvement
Smith Rowe is undoubtedly enjoying the best form of his career at the moment, and he has credited the development with a change in diet, in particular cutting out chocolate and Nando's.
“I didn’t used to eat that well,” the England international explains.
“I wasn’t drinking that well. Before games, I wasn’t really that hydrated. I’ve tried now to focus so much on it.
“Arsenal are strict but I didn’t really listen, to be honest. I think that’s where I went wrong. Now I’m listening all the time.
"Chocolate, I like Nando’s a lot – maybe that’s killing me a little bit. I’ve tried to cut out chocolate and takeaways as much as I can.
“The club have sorted me out with a chef. His name is Chris and he comes to my house every day. I live with my mum and she normally cooks but she doesn’t have to anymore. Chris cooks for me and her.
“With hydration, there’s loads of stuff we should be taking before a game and, yeah, before I was a bit too lazy.”
So far this campaign, Smith Rowe has four goals and two assists in 10 starts.
