“Arsenal have been my dream club for so long but i have to turn it down because of……”- 14 goal striker sammie szmodics revealed the reason why he rejected Arsenal for Colchester

“Arsenal have been my dream club for so long but i have to turn it down because of……”Sammie Szmodics, a 14-goal striker for Colchester, has spoken out about why he turned down Arsenal.
In addition to his impressive play on the field, Sammie Szmodics stands out for a pivotal decision he made early in his career: he turned down Arsenal to play for Colchester United, his local team. Now, he is Blackburn Rovers’ top scorer with 14 goals.

The chance to join Arsenal, one of England’s most illustrious clubs, was there, but Szmodics opted to remain with Colchester United, his hometown club.

You might as well play for one of England’s most illustrious clubs instead of your hometown squad, right? This is a common dilemma that young footballers face. But Szmodics, who was one of the English football league’s unsung heroes in the 2023–24 season and is now an integral part of Blackburn Rovers, had a different opinion.

“Arsenal always used to invite me down, but I just wasn’t interested,” Szmodics recalls, describing his time with the club from Under-10 level to Under-15 or Under-16. His decision was heavily impacted by his deep-rooted connection to Colchester United and the strong support of his family for the club.

It is clear that Szmodics is dedicated to his roots because he turned down multiple offers from Arsenal. All he ever wanted to do was play for Colchester United, and his family and he were their biggest fans, he says. In contrast to the temptation of playing in the Premier League, his rise through the ranks at Colchester United—from fan and ball boy to academy player and finally to the Under-23s—felt more meaningful.

When considering the possibilities, Szmodics does not feel any remorse. He ponders, “Now that I’m older, it sounds crazy, but who knows where my career would have gone if I’d joined Arsenal when I was younger? I doubt I would have become a footballer if given the chance. Because of his father’s worries about the intense competition in Arsenal’s youth system, which frequently imported players from abroad, Szmodics decided to remain put.

A different kind of success—one based on personal principles and gradual progression—is exemplified by Szmodics’ career, which was marked by stints with Colchester United, Bristol City, and Peterborough before joining Blackburn Rovers.

He developed a deep love for the game during his time in lower leagues, which included a loan stint at Braintree. While Szmodics acknowledges that he could have started his career in a Premier League academy and gone on to play in the EFL, he expresses his desire to continue his career by mentioning that he has played in the National League and worked his way up.

Football is only one aspect of life’s harsh realities explored in Szmodics’ story. Unfortunately, he had to cope with the loss of his close friend Spencer McCall, a semi-professional player who passed away at the young age of 26 from Ewing’s sarcoma, an extremely rare type of bone cancer. Szmodics’ life and work were illuminated by this personal tragedy. “It reminds you how precious life is, and how much I love football,” he muses.

Szmodics has been an outstanding asset to Blackburn Rovers this season, helping them make a run at the playoffs.