Demba Ba made history last week helping Basaksehir to lift their first Super Lig title.
Ba has now won the Turkish championship with two different clubs, the other being Besiktas.
The Senegal international first made a name for himself in the Premier League at Newcastle United and Chelsea but was so close to signing for Arsenal in 2013.
READ: Elneny will return to Arsenal but rival Super Lig clubs wants Egypt international
Ba revealed that he was on the verge of joining the Gunners but that Chelsea manager at the time Jose Mourinho blocked the move.
Speaking in the August 2020 issue of FourFourTwo Ba recalls, “I was really close [to joining Arsenal]. I was at my house in Paris, having a day off, when I got a phone call from Arsene Wenger – he asked if I’d come back to London for a medical.
“I woke up at 9am on transfer deadline day, jumped on a train, got to London, but then it never happened. Arsenal made a couple of signings on the same day [Mesut Özil and Emiliano Viviano] and Mourinho chose to block the deal, as he didn’t want to help make one of Chelsea’s competitors stronger.”
Instead, Ba ended up staying at Chelsea for the 2013-14 season before moving to Besiktas the following season.
The Senegal international won the championship with the Black Eagles in his first season at the club.
Ba enjoyed a stint in China before returning to Turkey before moving back to China and finally landing at Basaksehir in January 2019.
