Miyaichi eager to impress during Wigan loan spell

Arsenal youngster Ryo Miyaichi is hoping to impress during his season-long loan spell at Wigan Athletic.

The 19-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at Bolton and has previously enjoyed a temporary spell at Feyenoord.

And he revealed the Gunners were eager to send him to a Premier League rival in order for him to continue his development.

Speaking to reporters, he said: "Arsenal talked about wanting me to go to Wigan and get some playing time, and so I consider this to be an important year for me as a player. I want to leave results that people will notice."

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The winger also confirmed a deal had been in place between the two clubs for a while, adding: "To be honest, the contract was signed before I came to Japan, so I was able to switch over mentally. Right now I want to focus on preparing for tomorrow.

"When I emailed Ali [Al-Habsi] to let him know we'd be on the same team, he tweeted 'Ryo's coming!' before the announcement. I was a bit shocked!

"But since I have that sort of close friend on the team I hope I can blend well with my team-mates and make it a good year."

The Japanese international scored once and got two assists in 14 appearances at Bolton last season.