Arsenal star Shkodran Mustafi insists he’s taken no notice of a poll conducted by Spanish publication Marca which named him the second worst defender in the world.
After more than 150,000 votes were cast, Manchester United defender Phil Jones (47%) beat Shkodran Mustafi (35%) to the title that neither of them would have wanted.
Unai Emery conceded in the summer that Mustafi was free to leave if Arsenal received a suitable offer and Serie A giants Juventus and Roma were reportedly interested in the signing the 27-year-old.
However, a move never happened and, while Mustafi is yet to play in the Premier League this campaign, though he’s impressed in Arsenal’s cup competitions.
The Germany international played every minute against Eintracht Frankfurt, Nottingham Forest and Standard Liege, with Arsenal recording clean sheets in all three games.
Asked bluntly whether he is the second worst defender on the planet, as Marca‘s poll suggests, Mustafi told Spiegel: ‘No, I do not think so.
‘I would think about it more seriously if it had been a survey among the best coaches in Europe.
‘In the first two years after my move to Arsenal in 2016, things went very well for me. I saw myself as a top performer. But shortly after Christmas 2018 there was a kink.
‘I made a few mistakes and they produced a reaction that I’ve never experienced before.’
Mustafi pinpoints Arsenal’s 5-1 defeat against Liverpool in December 2018 as the moment he began receiving more criticism from fans.
The German had been struggling with a thigh muscle strain leading up to the game and suffered another setback when Emery pushed him to play against Liverpool.
‘I had missed three weeks through injury and then went into the game without training with the team because the coach needed me,’ Mustafi added.
‘At half-time it was 4-1, I didn’t look good a few times and injured myself again.
‘Afterwards, I got a lot of negative comments from Arsenal fans on Instagram and Twitter and articles were written in which I was harshly criticised.’
‘In the summer there were considerations to change the club but there wasn’t an option that all sides would have been happy with,’ he added.
‘Arsenal also attached some conditions to a possible departure despite the statements.
