Arnesen wanted to bring Bendtner to HSV: ‘I did everything’ | OneFootball

He was arguably one of the most extraordinary footballers of his generation. “Lord Bendtner” even came close to joining HSV.

Nicklas Bendtner made headlines during his career less for his goals and more for his extravagant persona. The nickname “Lord Bendtner” became a cult term and to this day symbolises the striker’s unconventional attitude. But behind the dazzling façade was also a highly talented forward, and there was no doubt about that. It was precisely this promising attacker that Frank Arnesen was determined to bring to HSV in the summer of 2012.

“I did everything I could back then to sign Nicklas,” the former HSV sporting director now told Mopo. Arnesen tried to convince Bendtner to move to Hamburg and also pointed to the special connection between HSV and Denmark: “I told him, maybe this is a step back for you, but at HSV you’ll play in the Bundesliga and 3,000 Danish fans will come to the home games. That’s what would have happened.”

Photo: IMAGO

Arnesen explains why HSV missed out on Bendtner

In the end, Bendtner, who was under contract with Arsenal at the time, decided against a move to the Volkspark. “I spoke a lot with Nicklas Bendtner. But he was determined to play in European competition,” Arnesen had already explained in September 2012. So instead of joining HSV, the striker moved on loan to Italian giants Juventus. However, the big breakthrough never came, neither in Turin nor elsewhere.

Would it have worked out better at HSV? Probably not. What is clear, though, is that during his time in office between 2011 and 2013, Arnesen was visibly keen to make greater use of the Scandinavian market. Among others, he signed midfielder Christian Nørgaard from Lyngby BK. But the young player failed to establish himself in the Hanseatic city and returned to his homeland after just one season. From Arnesen’s point of view, a missed opportunity.

“It was unbelievable that HSV let him go back then,” he says in hindsight about Nørgaard. Later in his career, Nørgaard developed into a key player at Premier League club Brentford and now plays for Arsenal — Nicklas Bendtner’s former club.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.