LONDON World Cup golden boot winner Davor Suker said goodbye to Premier League Arsenal by thanking Manager Arsene Wenger for the chance to play in England and apologizing to Arsenal fans for a penalty miss in last season's UEFA Cup final.
The Croatian international, who joined fellow Premier League club West Ham in a free transfer in June, also thanked the Arsenal fans for the way they took him to their hearts in the year he spent at Highbury.
"I had a good relationship with Arsene Wenger and made a number of friends who I will always remember," Suker said on Arsenal's official Website.
"I really enjoy living in London and I didn't want to leave the Premier League.
"I would like to thank the Arsenal fans for the great reception they always gave me," he added.
Suker's first-team opportunities at Arsenal were limited with the impact that French international Thierry Henry made in his first season.
But Suker, who won the World Cup golden boot in 1998, still netted 11 goals for the north London club.
"We had some quality strikers at Arsenal and if you ask any big name player, they all want to play in the first team. There was great competition for places." Suker's repeated his apologies for his penalty miss in the UEFA Cup final against Copenhagen in what proved to be his final match for Arsenal.
"The penalty miss against Galatasaray was my fault and I am still very angry about it.
I want to apologize to the Arsenal fans for that mistake.
"The miss still plays on my mind because it was my last game for Arsenal and we had the chance to win the UEFA Cup." The Turkish club beat Arsenal 4-1 on penalties after the May 17 match had ended 0-0 in extra time.
Suker and French midfielder Patrick Viera both hit the woodwork with their kicks in the shootout.
(Reuter)