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Jenkinson leaves Arsenal for West Ham on loan

Carl Jenkinson was facing a battle for first-team football at Arsenal this season © PA Photos

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West Ham have signed Arsenal defender Carl Jenkinson on a season-long loan deal.

Jenkinson, 22, has been allowed to spend the campaign at Upton Park after Arsenal added right-backs Mathieu Debuchy and Calum Chambers to their squad.

He thanked West Ham manager Sam Allardyce along with co-chairmen David Sullivan and David Gold after completing the move.

"It's brilliant how it has turned out and I just want to thank the gaffer and Mr Sullivan and Mr Gold because they put in a big push to get me here," Jenkinson told the club's official website.

"I'm clearly seen as a big part of things here and hopefully I can prove my worth here because it is an important year for me.

"I was flattered to have a lot of options but, deep down, if I was being honest with myself, West Ham was always the place I wanted to go to. It's one of them where I wanted to do the right professional thing and consider all the options, but in the back of my mind it was always West Ham and I'm just so glad it's all worked out how I wanted it to in the end.

"It will be brilliant to play here. I've got a lot of friends who are West Ham fans and I know how good the supporters are here. I've played here a couple of times so I know exactly what it is all about, so it's going to be fantastic to be a part of that, to be honest.

"You get a great atmosphere here and the fans are great, so I just can't wait to get a West Ham shirt on and get on the pitch and play. This is an exciting time for me, it really is."

A message on his parent club's official website read: "Everyone at Arsenal would like to wish Carl the very best for the 2014-15 campaign."

Jenkinson joined Arsenal from Charlton Athletic in 2011 and made a solitary appearance for England in 2012.

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