Arsenal Invincible reacts to shout-out from Zohran Mamdani: 'I'll send him a jersey'

Tom Weber

• 26 Nov 2025 15:01 CST
• 4 min read

News

Former Arsenal defender Pascal Cygan has promised to send Zohran Mamdani a shirt from the 'Invincibles' season after receiving a surprising shout-out from the New York City mayor-elect.

Mamdani made an appearance on The Adam Friedland Show during Sunday's North London Derby between Arsenal and Tottenham. The 34-year-old and host Friedland are passionate supporters of the Gunners, so naturally a large part of the conversation centred around football.

In preparation for the show, Friedland had managed to secure personal video messages from Arsenal legend Ian Wright and cult hero Hector Bellerin for Mamdani, who subsequently went viral on social media for his wholesome reaction to the gesture.

At one point during the discussion, Mamdani joked that he wakes up thinking about Sebastian Squillaci, Pascal Cygan and Marouane Chamakh every day. This surprising shout-out to some easily forgotten former Arsenal players also made the rounds on social media.

Many wondered why these were the first players to come to Mamdani's mind when thinking of former Arsenal stars, considering that he will have grown up watching some of the greatest performers in club history.

Cygan reacts to Mamdani shout-out

Among the people bemused by Mamdani's comments is none other than the aforementioned Cygan. L'Equipe visited the former defender, who was part of the 'Invincibles' team that won the 2003/04 Premier League without losing a single game, to get his reaction.

The 51-year-old admitted that he and his family were touched by the shout-out and took it as a sign that Mamdani is a true diehard Arsenal fan. However, he did also quip that Mamdani likely grew up idolising Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry and not benchwarmer Pascal Cygan.

"He is the mayor of New York, one of the most famous people in the world," Cygan said. "We hear a lot about him right now. My parents were very moved when I told them the news.

"That’s where you see the difference between a true fan and a casual. It means he knows and has supported all the players who have played for the club. Still, I imagine I wasn’t the player who made him dream the most when he was young.

"It was probably more like Thierry Henry or Dennis Bergkamp. I also suspect that if he mentioned me, it was to answer a question like: ‘Could you prove to us that you really know Arsenal’s history?’

“I’m going to send Zohran Mamdani a jersey I wore during the 'Invincibles' season, along with a short note. I’m going to contact the New York City Hall to make sure it actually reaches the mayor.

"I’m not doing this to get invited to New York, especially since I’m not very proud of my English. It’s just to thank him. The funny thing is, I didn’t keep many jerseys from my career; I just put a few aside, thinking they might be useful for special occasions - and this is one of them, isn’t it?"

You can watch the full interview with Mamdani below...

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