FORMER Arsenal defender Emmanuel Eboue once told the Queen he would quit football to look after her corgis. The ex-Gunners right-back spent seven years at the North London club between 2004 and 2011. As well as his footballing ability, Eboue was known for having a wicked sense of humour. And he previously revealed how he […]
FORMER Arsenal defender Emmanuel Eboue once told the Queen he would quit football to look after her corgis.
The ex-Gunners right-back spent seven years at the North London club between 2004 and 2011.
As well as his footballing ability, Eboue was known for having a wicked sense of humour.
And he previously revealed how he went against Thierry Henry‘s wishes during an encounter with Her Majesty – only to leave the Queen in stitches.
Speaking to The Telegraph back in 2016, he said: “We went there and Thierry Henry said to me: ‘Please, Emmanuel, this is Buckingham Palace, it’s the Queen’s house, don’t do anything.’
“‘No problem,’ I said. ‘Don’t worry’.
“So the Queen came in and went along shaking each player’s hand. After she’d finished I saw all her corgis so I said, ‘Ma’am, Ma’am’.
“She turned back and asked, ‘How are you?’
“And I said, ‘Ma’am, I am OK thank you but please, I don’t want to be a footballer any more, I want to look after your dogs. I want to take them for walks, wash them, feed them. I want to be a dog carer’.
“The Queen, honestly, she was laughing. Prince Philip was laughing too. All the team were laughing.”
Eboue made 219 appearances for Arsenal during his lengthy spell in the English capital, scoring nine goals.
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However, he failed to win a single piece of silverware.
The closest he came was in the 2006 Champions League final when Arsenal were beaten by Barcelona.
He was also a part of the squads which lost in the 2007 and 2011 League Cup finals.
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