Arsenal's Bacary Sagna has told Champions Magazine that his blonde braids were the 'rewards' for winning a bet with his demanding father, Bassirou. "Ah, the hair," says the Frenchman when asked about his golden curtain. "I was 17 or 18 and playing in the fourth team against the seniors. They were 25 to 30 years of age, and we were teenagers, a young team like Arsenal.
"But we were playing better than them because we played as a team; we used to do everything together. The bet was I had to score two goals to change my hairstyle.
"That's my father - not one, two! Afterwards, I called him and told him I'd done it. He didn't believe me, but I did it and I remember thinking, 'Now, I can do what I want.'"
Sagna is also amused by the idea that the bouncing braids might be enough to stop an opponent in his tracks. "It can happen, no? They have to be careful, stay away from me."
Sagna agrees with Gunners boss Arsene Wenger that Arsenal are close to achieving something special.
"Of course we can do it," he says. "Last year I don't know what we missed, but it was nothing. At the beginning of last season we were sleeping. I don't know why maybe we were still on holiday. But when we started playing our own game, when we realised, we played better football."
