O’Neill can’t believe Arsenal did not get more out of ‘phenomenal’ Gnabry and reckons he will be Euro 2020 star
SERGE GNABRY once again made Arsenal fans wince with a hat-trick past Northern Ireland, whose boss Michael O'Neill was left astounded by the winger's Premier League snub.
The Gunners only handed Gnabry 18 appearances after he came through the academy - scoring just once.
And a spell on loan at West Brom was even less fruitful, leading to him being sold to Bundesliga side Werder Bremen.
It was there that Gnabry kicked on, leading to his Bayern Munich move and form for the national side with O'Neill's side his latest victims.
Speaking after the 6-1 loss, the new Stoke coach said: "Gnabry's goalscoring record is phenomenal.
"It's a mystery to me how English clubs didn't get more out of him."
It is fair to say Gnabry didn't impress at Emirates Stadium but he didn't get much of a chance at West Brom at all.
Manager at the time Tony Pulis famously remarked: "He just hasn’t been for me, at the moment, at that level to play the games."
After Gnabry smashed four goals past Tottenham in the Champions League, the ex-Baggies boss admitted he was "amazed" because the winger was never fit.
O'Neill now expects the 24-year-old to launch an attack on the upcoming Euro 2020 tournament.
He continued: "I'd be surprised if this Germany team doesn't make a big impact [at Euro 2020]."
"I've always had the highest possible opinion of Gnabry.
"Right from the start it was obvious to me he would be a fantastically important player.
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"He was always one to pass the ball to, he doesn't play up front all the time, he lets himself fall back a bit and you can find him anywhere on the pitch and he's able to play in many different positions.
"These are prime qualities in any players and also his finishing is technically fantastic.";
Destined to play at Munich's Allianz Arena during the group stage, Gnabry finished qualifying with eight goals - including two hat-tricks.