Gael Clichy claims that he turned down a lucrative new contract with Arsenal to join Manchester City because he was fed up with the failure of Arsene Wenger’s team to win trophies. The 25-year-old France defender says that after only a week with his new team-mates on City’s pre-season tour in the United States and Canada, he already feels he has made a winning choice. ‘After spending eight years with Arsenal it would have been easy to sign a new contract to stay there because they’re a fantastic club that will always be challenging for trophies,’ said Clichy. ‘But it got to a point for me where I didn’t just want to challenge for the titles only to be disappointed in the final weeks of the season. I wanted to play for a club that would win them.’ Clichy, who signed a four-year contract with City, insisted that he was not being critical of fellow Frenchman Wenger or Arsenal. But the failure of Wenger’s team to convert title challenges into silverware had persuaded him to move. ‘I joined City because I felt that this was a club ready to win important trophies over the next few years,’ said Clichy. ‘Look at last season. At Arsenal we were challenging for all four trophies. But in the end we finished fourth and without a trophy. City came third and won the FA Cup. So I’m joining a club who are winning trophies.’ Clichy admits he had once harboured doubts about City’s reliance on the wealth of the club’s Abu Dhabi owners. ‘When Sheik Mansour first took over here there was a lot of scepticism in the game, and I was one of the sceptics,’ he said. ‘The criticism was that it was all about the money. But, for me, last season proved that City are now one of the top clubs in the game. ‘I know from my own experience that when it comes to the most important part of the season you can’t just have a great team, you need a great squad. ‘It was so frustrating at Arsenal. At times last year we played some fantastic football and looked as good as any team in the league. But there were also times when we had injuries to our best players and we couldn’t cope. If we lost Cesc Fabregas or Robin van Persie then the team really suffered. ‘I’ve been at City only a week but I look around and see a squad that is strong. I see a group of players good enough to allow the manager to rotate - and that is what makes a successful club.’ City play Vancouver Whitecaps on Monday night. They will complete their trip to North America by returning to California for a match against David Beckham’s LA Galaxy on Thursday. Source: Dailymail.co.uk