Ex-Arsenal man Mohamed Elneny has joined Greek Super League club Levadiakos, who are rock bottom of the division.
The Egyptian international was a free agent after leaving UAE club Al Jazira in the summer, and he’s now looking to try and save his new side from the drop.
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Levadiakos have started the season with one draw and four defeats.
They are yet to score a goal and have conceded nine, but Elneny is confident he can make a difference.
In a message to the fans, he said: “Hello everyone, I have signed with Greek club Levadiakos. I am very happy to start my career here.
“I hope things go well. I will give my best for this team. Levadiakos fans, I’ll see you in the next match. I am very excited to start my career with the club.”
It will be a bit different to playing at the Emirates Stadium in front of 60,000 people as Levadiakos’ stadium holds a capacity of jusy 5,900.
The good news for Elneny and his new teammates is that they have already played Greek big hitters PAOK, Olympiakos and Panathinaikos as well.
New career path for Elneny
Elneny has never been afraid to try different leagues and test himself at various levels.
The 34-year-old has been in Switzerland, Egypt, England, Turkey and Abu Dhabi.
And now, he’s in Greece but not with one of the major sides and instead a team battling relegation and looking to try and survive.
It is a far cry from winning the FA Cup with Arsenal in 2019 under Mikel Arteta.
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During his eight-year spell at Arsenal, Elneny only made 161 appearances but Arteta always praised the Egyptian for his character and work rate.
The duo even played together near the end of the Spaniard’s playing days in north London.
But the feeling was very much mutual as Elneny said when leaving Arsenal in 2024: “Everyone made me feel welcome but there were two people in particular who went out of their way to make me feel at home.
“The first was Arsene Wenger, the day I arrived at the training ground, and the second? Mikel Arteta.
“As soon as I came onto the pitch he was talking to me and, after, we would go for lunch, and in the dressing room he was talking to me, all through my first few days here.
“What Mikel also did was talk to my agent and tell him I was a good player because he knew my agent was going to tell me. And it made me happy. I think things like that, which seem to be part of the Arsenal DNA, are incredible.”
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And it seems Elneny predicted Arteta’s success, as he said: “We’re really together and we do everything together.
“I love Mikel’s ideas, for sure, because he always wants us to be together, with him as well.
“Mikel for me is a genius because he made this connection between the players, and him, and the club, and the fans, all of us together. I think it’s something really magical – because you have to do magic to do this. I swear, the fans feel like they are one of us.
“They’re not apart from us. They come to the stadium happy and you can see how much they are behind the team – when we are away you see how many people come. We are lucky to have these fans behind us.”
