It has been a while, but Fredrik Ljungberg, it seems, has found a target again. The midfield player claimed that he left Arsenal because of their lack of ambition, after he completed a move for a fee that could reach £3 million to West Ham United yesterday. Ljungberg said that he questioned the ambition of Arsenal when they sold Thierry Henry, the captain, to Barcelona last month.

Ljungberg signed a three-year contract with the option of a further year, worth £60,000 a week, and becomes the fifth new player at Upton Park this summer. West Ham failed to sign him in January, but they stepped up their effort last week after learning that Julien Faubert, the midfield player, will be out for six months after he ruptured an Achilles tendon.

Ljungberg’s departure - and the expected sale of José Antonio Reyes - means that there are only four players left from the squad that went through the season unbeaten in 2003-2004.

“When Thierry Henry left, it felt like the end unfortunately and it made me a bit sad,” Ljungberg said. “When I signed my last contract two years ago we talked about the future, building a new stadium and bringing in top players, but it didn’t really happen. Clubs wanted to buy me in previous summers, but I stayed loyal. But I thought that it was the right time to do something different and a new challenge.

“Of course the decision tugged at my heartstrings because I had been at Arsenal almost ten years.”

Arsenal could counter that the Sweden captain has been available for transfer for nearly two seasons, after it became clear that a series of injuries had taken their toll on his body. He has lost some of his pace, and the vision of Dennis Bergkamp, who retired, to match his ability to time a run into the penalty area. He has scored only one league goal in the past two seasons, compared with ten in the season before, and 12 in 2001-02.

“With David Dein [the former vice-chairman] leaving Arsenal, it’s not been easy as a player,” Ljungberg said. “Maybe Arsène Wenger [the manager] has had to do a lot more work because David Dein has left.”