How misfiring Arsenal youngster Serge Gnabry found his feet at Bayern Munich

Arsenal fans will have taken great satisfaction in seeing Serge Gnabry tear Tottenham apart on Tuesday night.

However, there will have no doubt been a feeling of disappointment that he was doing it in the red of Bayern Munich and not that of Arsenal.

When Gnabry joined the Gunners from Stuttgart for around £100,000 in 2011, there was a belief the club had unearthed another of Arsene Wenger’s hidden gems. A year later, like so many youngsters before him, he was making his debut in the League Cup, with Wenger saying: “He is in the category of [Alex] Oxlade-Chamberlain and [Theo] Walcott — guys who have great power, great pace, good dribbling skills, scoring potential and good vision for the final ball.”

Gnabry’s trajectory continued on an upward curve and a fine start to the 2013/14 campaign led to him being nominated for the Golden Boy — an award which honours the best player in Europe under the age of 21 in a calendar year. Gnabry was shortlisted but missed out to a certain Paul Pogba.

That season felt like it was going to be Gnabry’s breakthrough campaign but a knee injury, coincidentally picked up against his current employers, proved damaging. It ruled him out for more than a year, stalling his progress just when he was hitting his stride. To get him back on track, Arsenal elected to loan him to West Brom for the 2015/16 season. The move was a disaster as Gnabry made just three appearances all season. “Serge has come here to play games but he just hasn’t been at that level to play them,” said then Albion boss Tony Pulis.

Gnabry returned to Arsenal that summer with a decision to make, as he entered the final year of his contract. Wenger wanted the forward to stay but was unsettled about advice from within the club about Gnabry’s long-term prospects. There was also some disagreement over what his best position would be, with Wenger eyeing a possible central midfield role.

Consequently, the German faced the prospect of a lengthy spell as back-up and, after a fine performance at the Olympics, Werder Bremen came calling with a £5m offer. The now well-trodden path to the Bundesliga offered more immediate first-team football and, faced with the prospect of losing him for nothing, Arsenal cashed in.

“Arsenal wanted to keep me badly, but I had to look after my development,” said Gnabry, a few months after leaving.

Judging by last night’s performance, his decision was justified.