Such is the legacy that Emmanuel Petit left behind at Arsenal, that it can be easy to forget the midfielder only played in North London for three years. After almost a decade of playing for Monaco in Ligue 1, Petit moved to the Premier League in 1997, reuniting with a certain Arsene Wenger.
Petit made over 100 appearances for Arsenal in all competitions, winning the Premier League and FA Cup in his first season with the club before winning the World Cup with France that summer. Petit would also win two Charity Shields with the Gunners as a staple of their midfield.
Such was Petit’s defensive excellence, he was comfortable playing at centre-back alongside his natural position in midfield. In 2000, Barcelona came calling for the Frenchman and the Catalan giants are infamously hard to say no to. As such, Petit completed a transfer to Spain that year.
Despite his quality, 1998 World Cup winner Petit would only spend one season in La Liga. Having been moved predominantly to central defence, Petit struggled massively with injuries and as such, could not make himself a fixture in the Barca first team. He scored one goal for the club, which came just weeks before his eventual departure.
Petit returned to English football in 2001, though in a conversation with FourFourTwo back in 2023, the former midfielder expressed regret over what transpired.
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Petit Could Have Joined Manchester United
Midfielder had more than one conversation with Sir Alex Ferguson
Arsenal captain Tony Adam's (left) celebrates with Emmanuel Petit
When Petit made the decision to return to English football, he did so by signing with Chelsea, one of a number of teams that held an interest in him when it became apparent that a departure from Barcelona was on the cards.
Though no longer young by footballing standards, Petit was only in his early 30s when he left Catalonia and feasibly had years remaining at the highest level. As Petit explained, Manchester United were one of the parties interested in acquiring his services and looking back, he regrets not having moved to Old Trafford.
“I had many clubs interested in taking me back to England (in 2001). Arsenal approached me, but so did Manchester United.
"I spoke to Arsene. He really wanted me back, but I was honest with him: I said, ‘I appreciate it and it’s very tempting, but I didn’t feel that you wanted me to stay when I signed for Barcelona a year ago’. It’s like divorcing somebody: when you don’t feel desired by them, what’s the point of going back?
“I should have gone to Manchester United, because Sir Alex Ferguson called me twice. We had a very good conversation and it was tempting, but once again I listened to my wife. She wanted to go back to London–she didn’t want to live in Manchester–so I made the same mistake twice in one year.”
Petit Signed For Chelsea Instead
The Frenchman spent three years at Stamford Bridge
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Despite being admired by one of the greatest managers of all time in Sir Alex Ferguson, Petit made the decision to sign for Chelsea, in no small part due to his wife’s wishes. Though Arsenal fans had a love (that still remains) for Petit, it is understandable as to why he did not want to return, given Wenger had deemed his exit acceptable just one year prior.
So, to Chelsea Petit went. He immediately became a consistent fixture in the first team, though the 2001/02 campaign was an underwhelming one for the Blues, who finished sixth in the Premier League and lost the FA Cup final to Petit’s former club, Arsenal, in a defeat that will have been especially bitter for the midfielder.
Emmanuel Petit Chelsea Stats
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Petit helped Chelsea secure Champions League qualification in his second season at Stamford Bridge, forming an effective partnership with Frank Lampard under the management of Claudio Ranieri. In his final campaign as a Blue, however, Petit struggled heavily with injuries and spent much of it on the sidelines.
Petit was released by Chelsea in the summer of 2004, retiring in the following January after rejecting an offer from Bolton Wanderers and being unable to fully recover from knee surgery. Injuries, of course, can not be helped in football, but had Petit joined Manchester United, it is certain that the final chapter of his career would have looked incredibly different.
( All stats are fromTransfermarktand are correct as of 18/03/2025 )
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