Albert Sambi Lokonga exclusive: 'No regrets over Arsenal move but now I want stability'

Yahoo

4 days ago

Albert Sambi Lokonga is unsure exactly what the future holds for him beyond this summer, but he hopes whatever happens the end result is stability.
The Arsenal midfielder has just finished his third loan spell in two and a half years after spending last season with Sevilla.
Lokonga enjoyed the experience, fulfilling a childhood dream of playing in Spain, but now the season is over attention has turned towards his future.
The Belgian's agent has already met with new Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta and the club have taken up the option to extend his contract by a year so that it runs until next summer.
'So the situation is really, really open,' Lokonga tells Standard Sport. 'To talk about my future… I can't say anything, because I really don't know where I will end up.
'I can't say it's tough, because I still have one year on my contract, but it is true that as a player you want to know where you will end up or where you will stay.
'For me, I really don't know what is going to happen - but what I know for sure is I need stability. I need a club where I can stay for two or three years, to play and develop again.'
If Lokonga is to leave Arsenal, then his preference would be to stay in Spain.
The 25-year-old has enjoyed his time at Sevilla, where both he and his wife have settled in the city.
Lokonga learned Spanish quickly, so much so the local music is now on some of his playlists, and the lifestyle has lived up to what he expected.
'It's a country that I could see myself living in after football,' he says. 'Already, before I came here, I was thinking to move to Spain or Portugal. But now it just confirms my opinion that the life here is amazing.'
Lokonga has embraced the local culture, admitting he has become a big fan of paella, and he has also got a taste for Spanish football.
Growing up, he used to idolise the famous Barcelona midfield of Andres Iniesta, Sergio Busquets and Xavi.
It is why Lokonga always fancied a stint in La Liga and, even in a difficult season for Sevilla, he has performed well.
'I think it is a really good league and a league that suits me,' he says. 'England is way more physical and here it is more technical.
'I am grateful for the experience that I had in London, at Arsenal, because I learnt a lot. It helped me to be the player that I am today and to impose my style here in Spain.
'Personally, I had really good games over here. I think I did a good job with the team, but obviously when the results of the team are not going that well it's a more difficult to shine.
'I really liked it, because I started as a No6. At times I was a No8 and I ended up nearly like a false nine! Unluckily I didn't score, but I think I was very dangerous when I played in this position.
'It was a great experience and it just helped me to become a more complete player. That's what I like, because I had the freedom to move and play in different positions.'
After a third loan spell, it would be easy to think that Lokonga regrets his move to Arsenal - but the opposite is the case.
The midfielder was just 21 when he joined the Gunners in 2021, leaving his childhood club Anderlecht as part of a deal worth around £15million.
Lokonga was a regular during his first season at Arsenal, playing more than he or anyone back in Belgium expected, and he values those 12 months highly.
'At the end of the day, I did well and that was just part of the process,' he says. 'It is not everywhere you are going to go that you are going to succeed.
'When you arrive at a club like Arsenal, you don't have time to adapt. You need to be there directly and to perform.
'With Mikel [Arteta], I learned so much and, for me, he is one of the best coaches I have had in my career. It is how he is in the details, how he is predicting things that can happen on the pitch. He is a leader.
'Spending one year with him, it is like you maybe spend five years with someone else. You learn so much. So if I had to do it again, I would do it again.'
Lokonga has similar feelings about his loan spell at Luton, where he spent the 2023-24 season.
It was a move that caught many by surprise, but the midfielder was won over by Luton's manager back then Rob Edwards, after the pitch he gave at Lokonga's house. The pair are still contact today and regularly speak via voice notes on WhatsApp.
'I am just in love with him,' says Lokonga, smiling. 'I had one of the best times of my life in Luton, because of the manager, the group we had, the staff, the stadium and I think the fans we had were amazing. Luton is a club that will stay in my heart forever.'
Lokonga is now hoping to make new memories and, crucially, put down roots somewhere.
Not 26 until October, he still has plenty of years ahead of him and remains ambitious.
'I would like to go to a World Cup with my country, to compete and hopefully bring home a medal,' he says.
'I am 25 now and if I can have three or four trophies in my cabinet [during my career], that will not be too bad.
'I think if you look at my career, I moved for the first time to the UK to Arsenal, then I had a couple of clubs. I think it is time for me to settle and stay in a club, and to be there for a couple of years.'