Santos still believes he has an Arsenal future

Much-criticised left back Andre Santos (pictured) claims that his Arsenal career is not over, despite recently completing a loan move to Gremio, according to ESPN.

The 29-year-old moved to the Emirates Stadium from Fenerbahce on summer deadline day in 2011, and arrived with a high reputation.

However he has struggled to hold down a regular place in the Gunners starting XI, and came under-fire in some of his 33 appearances for a series of erratic performances and high-profile mistakes.

The arrival of Nacho Monreal for £8.3m from Malaga on deadline day pushed Santos further down the pecking order, but the Brazilian believes he will return in the summer as a better player.

He said: “The idea is to go there, play well and be able to come back strong.  Do I have a future at the club  For sure. This is a loan deal and after this season we will see where everything stands.” 

Arguably the low point of Santos’s career was when he decided to swap shirts with former teammate Robin van Persie in Arsenal 2-1 defeat at Manchester United in November.

He admitted: “The relationship was very good until the incident with Van Persie.  I have apologised and moved on. I have all my respect to the fans of Arsenal.” 

Santos’ final Arsenal game for now at least came as an early substitute for the injured Kieran Gibbs in a 2-2 draw with Liverpool last month.

Arsenal play Blackburn in the FA Cup on Saturday.

By Simon Wright - Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88