Cape Town - Arsène Wenger says he wanted to keep Lukasz Fabianski at Arsenal to compete with Wojciech Szczesny for the number one shirt.
Fabianski joined Swansea City in the summer when his contract ran out after seven years in north London.
The Poland goalkeeper is set to face the Gunners on Sunday for the first time since leaving, and Wenger says he cannot blame Fabianski for wanting a new challenge.
“I didn’t want to let him go, he was at the end of his contract,” Wenger admitted on the club's website.
“We didn’t sell the player but when you get to 27 or 28 and you’re not a regular first choice, you can understand that a player wants to go.”