Where is sagna now?
Having arrived in north London in 2007, Sagna quickly established himself as one of the best defenders in the Premier League with his consistent performances on the right side of Arsenal’s back four.
He was named in the Premier League team of the year in 2008 and 2011 and went on to make 284 appearances for the Gunners during his seven-year stay with the club.
But he left on a free transfer in the summer of 2014, having let his contract run down, and went on to make a move to Manchester City, where he spent the next three seasons before leaving in 2017.
The ex-France international has now revealed why the circumstances around Emirates Stadium at the time left him with no option other than to leave.
Sagna - who is a free agent and living with his family in Canada - admits Arsenal’s decisions to sell Robin van Persie to Manchester United and Alex Song to Barcelona played a part in bringing about his exit, but the main reason was how late the club left it before trying to enter into talks about a new contract.
“I got upset, not when [Cesc] Fabregas left - because that was quite an obvious move - not when [Samir] Nasri left, but when Robin left. It was like a statement from the club. He left in a way that no-one understood because he was flying,” the 37-year-old told Goal in an exclusive interview.
“He was a different type of player. An animal on the pitch, a goalscoring machine. When he left, I wondered why Arsenal didn’t try more to keep him.
“Even if they had to spend lots of money, just do it because you have to spend money to get another player. And if you want to win something, it’s going to take time for that player to adapt.
“I didn’t understand that and Alex Song’s move. The two of them left at the same time and I found out reading the French press. That got me really upset.”
Sagna added: “Not long afterwards I had an interview with L’Equipe and they asked me what my future was and at that time, I hadn’t held any talks about my future and I only had one year left before the end of my contract.
“To me, personally, if they wanted me to stay I would have stayed. But I didn’t feel like they did everything to make me stay. I was not expecting them to run around after me, but I at least expected them to show me some love and make me feel like they wanted me to stay one year before the end of the same contract I had kept for six years without asking for one penny more.
“But they only talked to me after I did that interview with L’Equipe. It did not feel like a natural move and I didn’t feel comfortable at all. This hurt me as a player and as a person because I always gave my best, I never asked for anything from 2008 to 2014.
“I didn’t knock at the club’s door to change contract, I respected my contract, but the way I left was a bit dirty. I didn’t like it, I didn’t feel comfortable anymore. Something broke inside my head.”
At the time of Sagna’s exit, there were many suggestions that his move was purely about getting one last big payday.
He was 31 at the time; the latest in a long line of players to move from Arsenal to big-spending Manchester City, following the likes of Emmanuel Adebayor, Kolo Toure, Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri.
But Sagna is adamant money had nothing to do with his decision.
“It was not about money like people think or any way of leaving to win trophies. No, I was happy at Arsenal,” he said.
“But my head was gone. I was upset. I remember the fans singing ‘we want you to stay’, but I couldn’t stay because I was upset and I couldn’t play with my head.
“Even my dad talked to me, saying ‘look you need to clear this up’ but I said I was too upset. I was not even performing. I remember my dad and my brother came to a game and they didn’t recognise me.
“I had some great moments, some difficult moments. I had some good seasons, some average seasons. But during that period I think I did more positive things than negative things and I never asked for anything.
“So I expected a bit more respect and so I made up my mind. When they came and said how can we help you, I said it was too late.”
Sagna is now living in Canada having spent the past two seasons playing in MLS with Montreal Impact.
He is currently without a club, but has not ruled out playing again once football’s temporary suspension caused by the coronavirus pandemic is lifted.
He could have returned to Europe in January, with several offers on the table, but he opted to remain in Montreal because he is currently applying for citizenship in Canada and any move would have seen he and his family lose their Canadian status.
It’s been nearly six years since the last of his 284 appearances for Arsenal - which came in the 2014 FA Cup Final, when the Gunners finally ended their nine-year wait for silverware.
After some near misses in terms of the title during Sagna’s spell at the club, and a painful defeat to Birmingham City in the League Cup final in 2011, Arsene Wenger’s side went into the game against Hull City as overwhelming favourites.
But they found themselves facing more heartache when they fell 2-0 down inside 10 minutes at Wembley before mounting a thrilling comeback to win 3-2 thanks to Aaron Ramsey’s now iconic extra-time winner.
For Sagna, it was an afternoon packed full of emotion, one that was perfectly encapsulated by a picture taken seconds after the full-time whistle where he is kneeling on the turf praying, while Arsene Wenger kisses him on the forehead.
“It was a hard game for me, honestly,” he said. “I knew I was going to leave and I wanted to win it so much.
“But when you want something too much, maybe it can have the opposite impact and we started really badly.
“On the pitch I had tears coming because I didn’t want to leave that way. I was desperate to win that game and so when we came back and managed to win, yes I was praying at the end because I was very grateful for winning in that shirt.
“For me, Arsenal is my beloved club. When I was in France, I used to watch Arsenal and it was something special to play for Arsenal. It was a privilege.
“So I was really grateful and I’m sill grateful to the club, to Arsene, because he was the one who brought me to the club and I had an amazing relationship with him.”
That FA Cup was the only trophy Sagna lifted during his time in north London, but it had looked for some time like he might mark his first season in England with the Premier League title having made the move from Auxerre in the summer of 2007.
Wenger’s exciting young side were five points clear at the top of the table during the 2007-08 season and had the chance to extend that advantage to eight points when they travelled to Birmingham City on February 23.
But the horrific leg break suffered by Eduardo in the opening minutes of that clash at St Andrew's, combined with James McFadden rescuing a point for the home side with an injury-time penalty, was the catalyst for an end-of-season collapse.
Arsenal drew their next three games in the league before losing at Chelsea and Manchester United. They ended up third, four points behind champions United.
A season that promised so much ended in disappointment and Sagna admits that game at Birmingham played a big part in the sudden loss of form.
“It was a massive blow to our team,” said the defender. “We were so confident, we had some form and we were not scared of anyone.
"Everything was going our way. Even when we began the season, we managed to win no matter what. Every time we were losing 1-0, we used to come back and win. The fans played a big part in it as well. They were pushing and the atmosphere was great.
“We were doing very good and Eduardo was flying, he was scoring many goals. He was our main scorer and the fact that he got injured I think it put some insecurity in our team, it maybe made us think about what might happen next.
“It was quite the shock to be on the pitch that day. I don’t want to use it as an excuse because after this we didn’t manage to win for so many games, which was not normal.
“That day at Birmingham was bad. It put insecurity into the team and we were not able to come back.”
The draw at St Andrew's also brought then-Gunners captain William Gallas' now infamous tantrum following the award of Birmingham’s late penalty.
The centre-back stormed to the halfway line in disgust before kicking an advertising hoarding and, after the final whistle, he sat alone on the pitch rather than join his team-mates back in the changing room.
Many felt Gallas’ outburst was another contributing factor in Arsenal’s capitulation, but Sagna does not believe that assessment is a fair one.
“I think it’s easy to say that he had the wrong attitude, but he was our captain and that time he tried his best,” said the right-back.
“Of course, showing in front of everyone that he wasn’t happy was not the best action, but for us, it was more that no-one could really understand why [he did it], instead of being upset with him.
“It’s the kind of thing that happened that shouldn’t be happening. But he was not the reason why we went down and I think everyone was a bit harsh on him.
“The press was really hard on him, even the club. I think he lost the captaincy soon after.
“Of course he made a mistake, but we were still on the path to achieving a great season and we all could have done better. On the pitch as players and as a club.”
The former Manchester City defender carried a heavy load during a decade in the Premier League but now helps others travel light after ending his playing journey.
Rather than let his career ramble on, the 39-year-old became a partner in French company Gravipack after a chance encounter with founder Mohammed Errafi on a train.
Ex-France ace Sagna pumped £220,000 into the business and joined a host of ramblers groups to show off the firm's lightweight products.
Appearing with Errafi on French TV, he hiked around the countryside with walkers and claimed: "This is the biggest challenge of my life outside of football."
Errafi recalled how Sagna thought he was crazy when he told the 65-cap icon about his weightless wonders.
He said: "In November 2019 I got onto a train at the same time as Bacary Sagna.
"I told him that I had invented a weightless rucksack. He burst out laughing, and told me I was mad.
"I have invented a product that comfortably spreads the load, and brings relief to one's back.
"The shoulder straps are unique. Your shoulders feel free, and there is an impressive absence of weight."
BETTING SPECIAL - BEST FOOTBALL BETTING SITES IN THE UK
Former Arsenal man Sagna was hardly known for getting into rucks during his playing career.
In 267 Prem games, he bagged four goals and was only sent off once, although he did pick up 29 bookings.
Bacary Sagna (born 14 February 1983) is a French former professional footballer who played as a right back and is mostly known for his time at Arsenal. He also played for the France national football team.
Sagna's former manager at Arsenal, Arsène Wenger, once described him as the best right-back in the Premier League. In addition to him regularly featuring as a wing-back, he played as a centre-back for Arsenal on several occasions.[4][5][6]
Sagna began his career at Auxerre, before transferring to Arsenal for £7 million in 2007. In 2014, shortly after winning the FA Cup, his first trophy at the club, he made a move to Manchester City.[7][8] A full international from 2007 to 2016, he was selected by France for two FIFA World Cup tournaments and one UEFA European Championship.
Sagna started his career at FC Sens. He played for their youth team until 1998.
In 1998, he moved to AJ Auxerre's youth team. Eventually, he was promoted to the first team and he made 87 Ligue 1 appearances for them. He was part of the squad that won the Coupe de France in 2005. He also played in the UEFA Cup in each of his three seasons with the club's first team, making a total of 17 appearances in the competition. He was also voted into the Ligue 1 team of the season for his outstanding displays at the right back position. He played in the same Auxerre team as Abou Diaby, a future Arsenal teammate, and Watford centre-back Younès Kaboul. Sagna established himself as one of the best full backs of the French top tier and thus became dubbed "Mr. Reliable" by the club's fans. He also won Auxerre's Player of the Year award for the 2006–07 season.[5][9]
On 12 July 2007, Sagna completed a move to Arsenal from Auxerre for an undisclosed fee, thought to have been an initial €9 million that could have risen to €11 million.[8] He was given the number 3 shirt, previously worn by former defender Ashley Cole.[10]
Sagna made his debut for Arsenal on 19 July 2007 as a starter in the squad that beat Turkish club Gençlerbirliği 3–0 in a friendly at Austria's Bad Waltersdorf Stadion.[11]
On 13 February 2008, exactly one week before Arsenal were set to play the second leg of their round of 16 encounter against Milan in the Champions League, Sagna's older brother, Omar Sagna, died at the age of 28, one day before his birthday. He, however, did play the match after he was advised to by his father. Arsenal went on to win the second leg 0–2 with the same scoreline on aggregate.
On 23 March, Sagna tallied his first Premier League goal off a low header from a corner kick to give Arsenal a 1–0 lead against London rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, but later went off injured before Chelsea came back to win the game 2–1.[12] At the end of the season, he was named in the PFA Team of the Year.[13]
Sagna signed a new deal with Arsenal before the start of the 2008–09 season. Arsenal signed him for a further two years, taking his contract up to 2014. Sagna stated, "I love Arsenal, it's a great club," and further added, "The manager is also very good and next season we will be fighting for all the trophies." He stunningly saved Arsenal in a 2–2 draw against Aston Villa when he jumped and kicked the ball away so that Arsenal would go into half time with the lead.[14]
Sagna struggled to replicate his form from the previous two seasons as injuries also prevented him from contributing to the team in the same way. He provided many assists though, his most important contribution arguably being the cross to striker Nicklas Bendtner, who gave Arsenal the 1–0 lead in the 94th minute against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Despite this, however, Sagna was linked away from the club with various teams, including Serie A's Internazionale, seemingly interested in taking the defender away from London.[15]
Sagna scored his first goal at the Emirates Stadium for Arsenal against Celtic, a game in which Arsenal went on to win 3–2 and win the Emirates Cup for the second consecutive year. He made his 100th league start for Arsenal on 3 October 2010, a 2–0 defeat against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. On 14 November, he scored only his second ever official goal for Arsenal in a 2–1 away victory against Everton at Goodison Park, with a powerful shot from the near post. On 8 December 2010, Sagna picked up his first red card in his Arsenal career in a 3–1 home victory against Serbian club Partizan in Arsenal's final Champions League group game of the season.
On 1 January 2011, in a match with Birmingham City, he was involved in an incident where Lee Bowyer stamped on him after Sagna had gone in for a tackle. Bowyer was banned by the FA for three games for the stamp. On 5 January, Sagna picked up his second red card of the season after he and Manchester City fullback Pablo Zabaleta headbutted each other in the final moments of Arsenal's 0–0 draw with City at Emirates Stadium. On 19 January, Sagna scored his second goal of the season with Arsenal's second goal in their 3–1 victory over Leeds United at Elland Road in a third round replay. This was Sagna's career best for goal-scoring, his previous best coming in the 2007–08 season where scored only once. Sagna was included in the PFA Team of the Year for his performance in the 2010–11 season.[16]
On 13 August 2011, Sagna started and played the full 90 minutes against Newcastle United at St James' Park in a 0–0 draw on the opening day of the 2011–12 Premier League season. On Saturday 20 August, he started at left-back and played the full 90 minutes in a 2–0 defeat at the hands of a Liverpool side that picked up its first win over the Gunners away from home in 11 years. On 28 August, Sagna missed Arsenal's game against Manchester United at Old Trafford due to illness.
Sagna sustained a leg break during a match against North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur after a challenge by Benoît Assou-Ekotto forced him to land awkwardly. On 29 January 2012, Sagna came off the bench against Aston Villa as an 89th-minute substitute to mark his comeback. On 26 February 2012, he started in the North London derby against Spurs, scoring a header from a Mikel Arteta cross and inspiring Arsenal to come back from being 2–0 down to go on and win 5–2.[17] He unfortunately sustained another leg break of the same leg in the final home match of the season against Norwich City, which ruled him out of UEFA Euro 2012 in June 2012.[18]
In October 2012, Sagna marked his return to the first team by starting in Arsenal's 1–0 victory over Queens Park Rangers.[19] On 3 November, he started and played the full 90 minutes at right-back against Manchester United at Old Trafford, a 2–1 league defeat.[20] In his absence with a broken leg, Carl Jenkinson started for Arsenal and earned rave reviews, but Sagna continued to be Arsenal's first-choice right back upon his return. On 9 February 2013, due to an injury to centre-back Laurent Koscielny during warm-ups, Sagna was forced to fill in as a central defender against Sunderland.[21] He helped a ten-man Arsenal win 1–0.[22] On 28 April 2013, Sagna committed a mistimed tackle inside the penalty box on Robin van Persie in a 1–1 home draw against Manchester United, conceding a penalty to bring the score level after a second-minute Arsenal goal from Theo Walcott.
Sagna remained Arsenal's first choice right-back at the start of the season, fighting off competition from Carl Jenkinson.[23] He scored his first goal of the season, his fifth in Arsenal colours, against Stoke City on 22 September, heading in Mesut Özil's free-kick, securing a 3–1 win for the Gunners.[24] On 17 May, Sagna started in the 2014 FA Cup Final as Arsenal beat Hull City 3–2 at Wembley Stadium, his first trophy at the club.[25]
It was announced on 27 May that Sagna would not extend his contract with the Gunners, which was set to expire at the end of the season. Although Arsenal offered him a two-year extension, Sagna was believed to be "90 per cent certain" of leaving the Emirates, thus rejecting the contract extension. Additional sources understand that Manchester City and a number of top clubs in Europe had expressed an interest in signing him.[26] Sagna said he did not sign a new deal with Arsenal because "the discussions did not go in the direction that he wanted".[27]
It was announced on 13 June 2014 that Sagna had agreed to a deal with Manchester City to join the reigning Premier League champions after his contract with Arsenal was set to expire on 30 June. He was City's first signing of the summer and signed a three-year deal, taking the number 3 shirt.[28] He left the club at the end of his contract in June 2017.
On 3 February 2018, Sagna signed with Serie A side Benevento Calcio for six months and a year in option.[29] On 29 April, Sagna scored his sole goal for Benevento with 90th-minute header in their 3–3 draw to Udinese.[30]
On 8 August 2018, Sagna signed with Montreal Impact in Major League Soccer for the remainder of the 2018 season, with an option for 2019.[31] Although the option was not taken up,[32] Sagna subsequently signed a one-year contract to stay with the club for the 2019 season.[33]
Sagna has previously represented the French under-21 team, with whom he also participated at the 2006 European Under-21 Championship.
At age 17 Sagna wished to join up with the Senegalese national team, stating, "I wanted to play for Senegal when I was 17, but they didn't reply. So I was a bit disappointed. But when I started playing for Auxerre for the first team, they contacted me and I had a game on the same day with the French national team under 21s so I had to make a choice."
Sagna received his first senior international cap for France on 22 August 2007 in a friendly match against Slovakia on the road, which they won 1–0, coming on as a substitute for François Clerc after one hour of play. He went on to make his competitive debut for France in their 6–0 away win at the Faroe Islands on 13 October 2007 in the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifiers, playing all 90 minutes. It was his only appearance in the Euro 2008 qualifying. He was not a candidate to join the French team at the Euro 2008 finals in Austria and Switzerland as he was still recovering from the injury sustained in Arsenal's Premier League match at Chelsea in March 2008.
After recovering from the injury, Sagna returned to the French team for their friendly match against Sweden in August 2008, playing all 90 minutes in a 3–2 away win. He went on to become a regular in the French team's qualifying campaign for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He was also a part of the disastrous French World Cup campaign when the team crashed out at the group stage after losing 2–1 against hosts South Africa.
Sagna missed out on UEFA Euro 2012 with a broken leg.[18]
Bacary Sagna was born in Sens, France to Senegalese parents.[34] He is a Muslim.[35] In 2010, he married French-Algerian model Ludivine Kadri with whom he already had a son named Elias (born in 2009). In 2013, Kadri gave birth to the couple's second son Kais.[36]
His cousin Ibrahima Sonko played in England for Reading and in Turkey for Akhisar Belediyespor.[37]
On 31 March 2011, Sagna became an ambassador for Grassroot Soccer, an international non-profit that uses the power of football to educate, inspire, and mobilise communities to stop the spread of HIV.[38]
Sagna is called "Bac" by the majority of his teammates.[39]
Source:[42]
Auxerre
Arsenal
Manchester City
Montreal Impact
Individual
Former Arsenal and Manchester City star Bacary Sagna has taken on an odd venture after calling it quits on his football career – backpacks.
Having carried the pressure of playing in the Premier League for a decade, the Frenchman, 39, has decided it is a good idea to help people travel light through some swanky backpacks.
As reported by The Sun, Sagna has now partnered with French company Gravipack, and the move was purely a slice of serendipity.
It turns out that Sagna bumped into ounder Mohammed Errafi and after a conversation, decided to pursue the venture.
This entailed pumping a whopping £220,000 into the store.
Now, Sagna joins a string of walking groups who show off the light weight backpacks.
Sagna appeared alongside Errafi on a French television station where he said this was “the biggest challenge of my life outside of football.”
Errafi also narrated the train encounter in 2019 and how Sagna initially could not fathom the concept.
As a player, Sagna was regarded as one of the best right backs in the Premier League during his time.
He made 267 Premier League appearances, scoring four goals and more impressively, he was sent off only once in the league, despite the risks that come with being a defender.
Elsewhere, Thibaut Courtois spoke to four different media outlets in four different languages following Real Madrid's UEFA Super Cup win
The Real Madrid goalkeeper who had an outstanding game against the Bundesliga side spoke 4 different languages in 4 different interviews after the 2-0 win against Frankfurt.
Rather than let his career ramble on, the 39-year-old became a partner in French company Gravipack after a chance encounter with founder Mohammed Errafi on a train. Ex-France ace Sagna pumped £220,000 into the business and joined a host of ramblers groups to show off the firm's lightweight products.
