Lukas Podolski: 'I made a mistake leaving Bayern Munich'

Arsenal forward Lukas Podolski has suggested that he regrets leaving Bayern Munich for FC Koln back in 2009.

The German international returned to his hometown club after two years with Bayern, but believes that if he had stayed longer, the he may have been included in Jupp Heynckes's team.

"I believe that if Jupp Heynckes had arrived one or two weeks earlier in 2009, I would probably still be at Bayern now," Podolski told Sport Bild magazine.

"He was desperate to keep me. From a purely sporting perspective, returning to Cologne was certainly not very helpful."

The 28-year-old moved to the Emirates in the summer of 2012.