Mathieu Debuchy looking forward to title challenge next season after tough Arsenal debut campaign

Arsenal summer signing Mathieu Debuchy is confident about helping the Gunners fight for the Premier League title next campaign after having a "difficult" debut campaign at the Emirates Stadium due to injuries.

The France international moved to north London in summer 2014 after Arsene Wenger's side agreed to pay around £12m ($18m) to Newcastle to secure his services.

Having garnered a reputation as one of the best right-backs in the Premier League during his time at St James' Park, he was expected to fill the void left by the departure of Bacary Sagna to Manchester City.

But Debuchy has only managed to start 10 Premier League games this season after being plagued by injuries during much of the campaign.

The 29-year-old underwent ankle surgery in September 2014 after suffering an injury in the fourth Premier League game of the season against Manchester City.

And having resumed his position in December, the defender spend another three months on the sideline after needing another operation on his shoulder following a collision with Stoke City's Marko Arnautovic during the 3-0 win over Stoke City in January.

Debuchy made a surprising return to action when he started the FA Cup semi-final with Reading on 18 April but was excluded from the squad during the latest Premier League victory over Hull City on Monday 4 May due to a new setback.

The former Newcastle star admitted his frustration but said he is looking forward to the challenge of helping the Gunners fight for the Premier League title next campaign.

"I am convinced that we will challenge for the title [next season]," Debuchy told Arsenal Player.

"Every big club wants to win it, Arsenal is a big club and it is definitely a target for us all.

"It has been a difficult season for me. I had two injuries, involving two operations, one on my knee, one on my ankle. It is a shame because I felt very good with the team, I think I made a good start to the season, so to be off the pitch for almost six months was difficult to deal with.

"When you start a new season in a new club, you really want to prove what you are capable of. I really thought that the difficult time was behind me and that I could show my qualities. Unfortunately I picked up my shoulder injury only a few weeks later and that was difficult for me to deal with."

Nevertheless, Debuchy claims he has settled quickly into the life in north London and hopes to play his part in the last part of the campaign, with the Gunners set to play the FA Cup final against Aston Villa on 30 May.

"But having a lot of French players at the club was a good thing to help me settle quickly, especially the guys that I know from the French national team. It was a bonus, and they've helped me a lot.

"Of course it is not finished yet but so far, it is a good season. We've picked up a lot of wins, a lot of good results. I really hope we can carry on playing well until the end, and if we do we will say it was a good season."