Fulham’s Emile Smith Rowe has said his move from Arsenal was the “toughest decision” of his career but one that was necessary for his happiness.
Smith Rowe left Arsenal for the west London club in the summer transfer window for a club-record fee of £34 million ($44.1m).
The 24-year-old was a graduate of Arsenal’s Hale End academy alongside teammate Bukayo Saka and made his Premier League debut in the 2021-22 season, but struggled for minutes in the past two seasons.
“I can’t remember an actual, exact moment,” Smith Rowe said. “But for the last two seasons I haven’t played as much as I wanted to and it was always in the back of my mind that I wanted to be happy again.
“I wanted to be playing. Sometimes you have to think of the best for yourself. I always want to put my club first but at the same time I have to make myself happy. It was probably the toughest decision I’ve had to make [to leave]. But I spoke to my family and we decided it was the best thing for me.”
The England international struggled with injuries after initially bursting to prominence with the Arsenal first team.
“[It’s] Really difficult. Definitely,” he said when asked by the Telegraph about dealing with fitness setbacks. “Ups and downs with injuries and then getting back fit and then not getting the opportunities that I obviously wanted.
“But at the same time Arsenal were pushing to win the league. So I had to wait and be patient. It was really tough. My family were there for me and I tried to stay as positive as I could. But it’s football and these things happen.
“Coming through the academy all you want to do is just play for your club and when you are not getting the opportunities there is only so much you can take. Like I said there is no bad feelings or anything. I am still supporting them, I still talk to a few of the boys. It’s all love.”
After not scoring for Arsenal since April 2022, Smith Rowe kickstarted his Fulham career with two goals and an assist in his first seven games.
“It was a relief,” he said of finding the back of the net again. “Just because I haven’t had a feeling like in a long time.
“It’s hard to explain the feeling. Just knowing that you have scored the goal and everyone is looking at you. I have really missed that feeling. It’s literally addictive. You want to know what it’s like tomorrow and the next day.”
