Yaya Sanogo confirms Arsenal exit but refuses to blame Arsene Wenger for injury struggles

Yaya Sanogo has confirmed that he will leave Arsenal this summer after the north London club chose not to hand him a new contract to further his stay at the Emirates Stadium.

The 24-year-old striker joined the Gunners from French club Auxerre in 2013, but made only 20 appearances for the first-team while also spending time away on loan during the last four years.

Crystal Palace was Sanogo's first loan club for final six months during the 2014/15 season. He was then loaned out to Ajax at the start of the following season, but returned midway after failing to impress, and secured a loan to Charlton Athletic for the remainder of the campaign. The 2016/17 season, however, was a write off as he failed to make a single first-team appearance after struggling with injury for the seven months of the campaign.

The France Under-21 international's contract with the 13-time FA Cup champions will expire at the end of this month and the club have not offered him an extension: "I have out of contract – the adventure is over," Sanogo stated, as quoted by the Mirror.

The striker is said to be in contact with Italian outfit Genoa, who play in the Serie A as he looks to get back to playing first-team football on a regular basis. Sanogo also refused to blame Arsene Wenger for his injury struggles and lack of playing time at Arsenal.

"Not bad. My left calf is healed. It kept me off the pitch for nearly 7 months. I came back in January, with a fitness trainer. I was able to play again for the Arsenal reserves. It was very hard when I was injured. You feel so mentally alone. There is virtually nobody at your side. And there is this frustration about not knowing what the source of my pain was," Sanogo told L'equipe, as quoted by Football London.

"The injuries stunted my progress, there were moments where I was good. I remember the summer of 2014 when, during the Emirates Cup, I scored a quadruple against Benfica. And then there were some bad decisions, and I maybe did not always do what was necessary to impose myself," the French forward said referring to his failed loan move to Ajax.

"Absolutely not. He [Wenger] is not responsible for my injuries. He is a great manager. He taught me a lot.

"A complete season, without injury issues. I dream of playing football," Sanogo added about Wenger and his plans for the future.