Arsenal Opt Against Offering Contract to Dennis Bergkamp's Son After Trial

Mitchel Bergkamp, the son of Arsenal legend Dennis, will not be offered a contract with the Gunners after going on trial for a week last month.

The midfielder is without a club having left Dutch second-tier side Almere City in the summer, and was invited to train with the club's Under-23s for a week under the guidance of former assistant manager, and club legend, Steve Bould.

But Bergkamp will not be following in his father's footsteps by signing an Arsenal contract, despite previously admitting that the club felt like "home" after growing up in north London: "My father also played for Internazionale and Ajax, two wonderful clubs, but Arsenal feels like home." he previously remarked to ELF Votebal, via Goal.

Having taken a look at what junior Bergkamp has to offer, Arsenal have decided to go in a different direction even though their Under-23s squad is depleted after allowing a number of players to go out on loan.

The Gunners have been working on bringing reinforcements in for Bould from abroad to compensate, but he remains shorthanded and does not have any players of real experience. At 22, Bergkamp does fit the profile of player needed, but it's apparent that he's not done enough to impress the club.

The same cannot be said for Bergkamp's father, who spent 11 illustrious years at Arsenal and made 423 appearances in total, scoring 120 times. He also contributed 94 Premier League assists, which remains a club record, and lifted three Premier League titles - including the Invincibles season - and four FA Cup trophies.

He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players to have graced the Premier League, and was one of the first overseas imports to have any sustained success in England. Bergkamp is also credited with helping Arsene Wenger overhaul Arsenal's identity, transitioning from fallen giants under Bruce Rioch and George Graham into free-flowing serial winners.