Tottenham’s Jamie O’Hara, currently on loan at Wolves, has revealed the debt of gratitude he feels he owes Arsenal having begun his career at the club.
The midfielder did not make a first-team appearance for the Gunners but spent five years in north London prior to signing for neighbours Spurs in 2003 and will come face-to-face with his former team this weekend as Wolves travel to the Emirates.
Speaking to The Guardian, O’Hara revealed what he felt he had learnt at Arsenal and how it still influenced his game today.
"I was at the Arsenal school training every day from 15 years old," he said.
"The structure there is fantastic. All the things I like to do, keeping the ball and passing it, all the things I enjoy about football come from Arsenal. They made me the player I am now."
However, the midfielder chose to swap one north London club for another, citing a lack of first-team opportunities as his prime motivator.
“They have been giving chances to young players recently because they've had to, they haven't gone out and spent money. But when I was there it was like there was a brick wall,” he explained.
“I played with David Bentley, Fabrice Muamba, players who have had to move on to get something out of the game. At that stage they had [Emmanuel] Petit, [Patrick] Vieira, they had 'the Invincibles'. In the end they didn't want me to go, but Tottenham came in with a great offer and I got pushed on there.”
Yet O’Hara has also found chances limited at White Hart Lane, hence his current loan deal with Molineux and the 24-year-old admitted life at Spurs could be difficult particularly with the likes of Gareth Bale, Luka Modric and Rafael van der Vaart around.
“It is tough. I've got some friends at Tottenham who aren't getting a chance and you can see it kills your confidence and your motivation and you can end up becoming a bad player.
"It's a difficult life at times. You just have to keep believing."
Having made his first start for Wolves last weekend in their shock 1-0 win over Manchester United, O’Hara added that he could see himself staying at Molineux.
"Wolves have been great so far. I've really enjoyed myself here,” he said.
"It's definitely a club I could see myself settling at."
The midfielder did not make a first-team appearance for the Gunners but spent five years in north London prior to signing for neighbours Spurs in 2003 and will come face-to-face with his former team this weekend as Wolves travel to the Emirates.
Speaking to The Guardian, O’Hara revealed what he felt he had learnt at Arsenal and how it still influenced his game today.
"I was at the Arsenal school training every day from 15 years old," he said.
"The structure there is fantastic. All the things I like to do, keeping the ball and passing it, all the things I enjoy about football come from Arsenal. They made me the player I am now."
However, the midfielder chose to swap one north London club for another, citing a lack of first-team opportunities as his prime motivator.
“They have been giving chances to young players recently because they've had to, they haven't gone out and spent money. But when I was there it was like there was a brick wall,” he explained.
“I played with David Bentley, Fabrice Muamba, players who have had to move on to get something out of the game. At that stage they had [Emmanuel] Petit, [Patrick] Vieira, they had 'the Invincibles'. In the end they didn't want me to go, but Tottenham came in with a great offer and I got pushed on there.”
Yet O’Hara has also found chances limited at White Hart Lane, hence his current loan deal with Molineux and the 24-year-old admitted life at Spurs could be difficult particularly with the likes of Gareth Bale, Luka Modric and Rafael van der Vaart around.
“It is tough. I've got some friends at Tottenham who aren't getting a chance and you can see it kills your confidence and your motivation and you can end up becoming a bad player.
"It's a difficult life at times. You just have to keep believing."
Having made his first start for Wolves last weekend in their shock 1-0 win over Manchester United, O’Hara added that he could see himself staying at Molineux.
"Wolves have been great so far. I've really enjoyed myself here,” he said.
"It's definitely a club I could see myself settling at."