Bellerin rejects ´crazy´ transfer rumours

Hector Bellerin has attempted to call time on “crazy” rumours linking him with a move away from Arsenal as he prepares for Unai Emery’s first season in charge.

Bellerin, 23, joined the Gunners in 2011 as a teenager having come through Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy.

After a loan spell at Watford he broke into the Arsene Wenger’s first team in 2014, making 20 Premier League appearances as a 19-year-old.

He has persistently been linked with a return to Barca in subsequent years, and the arrival of Stephan Lichtsteiner earlier in the transfer window has led to further speculation involving Juventus and Manchester United.

However, speaking to reporters in Singapore at the launch of Arsenal’s third kit on Friday, the Spain international looked to end the transfer talk.

“It is crazy that people ask me these questions all the time,” Bellerin said.

“A few years ago I signed a very long-term contract. I have never said that I have wanted to be anywhere else.

“I am very happy in London. I am very happy at this club.

“The club have made me who I am and gave me the chance to be the footballer I am today. So I don’t want to be anywhere else.”

#NewLevels in Singapore #AFCTour2018 

 https://t.co/980uMBpVI0 pic.twitter.com/HRQBGjOQIx

— Arsenal FC (@Arsenal) July 27, 2018

Emery took charge of his second game this pre-season as the Gunners lost on penalties to Atletico Madrid in the International Champions Cup on Thursday.

And Bellerin recognised the importance of giving the new head coach time to impose his philosophy.

“At all the teams that he’s been at, it’s all about being very competitive and really tight at the back,” said the defender.

“The important thing at the start is to allow everyone to get in sync with the new coaches and staff. If we do that, everything is going to work and we can challenge for very big things in the future.”