Jamie Vardy says he turned down a transfer move to Arsenal in the summer to try and build on Leicester City's Premier League title success.
The Leicester forward was subject to a bid from the Gunners in the summer that triggered his £20 million release clause, but -- after lengthy deliberations -- the England international opted to turn down a move to north London in order to continue with Claudio Ranieri at the King Power Stadium.
"It wasn't to do with 'loyalty' or how I feel about my teammates," Vardy wrote in his autobiography, serialised in The Sun. "Players always come and go.
"It was more a case of seeing Leicester as a club that wanted to build on what we achieved with the title and I want to be part of that. I'm happy with how everything has turned out.
"'The dream continues,' Claudio texted me after I agreed to stay. That's exactly how I felt, too."
A move to the club who finished a place below Leicester in the league last season proved extremely tempting for Vardy, 29, but concerns about how his playing style would fit in at Arsenal proved to be a stumbling block.
"I tried to work out the pros and cons," Vardy said. "With people like Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil creating chances, Arsenal felt they could benefit me as much as I could them.
"But I also thought about the tactical aspect. You look at Arsenal's style of play and they don't get the ball forward quickly in the same way Leicester do for those runs I like to make in behind the defence.
"One thing that didn't worry me was the idea that I wouldn't be the 'main man' at Arsenal.
"Every time I've moved, I've managed to meet the challenge in front of me. We even looked at new schools for the children, but I got to the stage where I felt with my heart and head that I wanted to stay at Leicester."
The Foxes have had a shaky start to their title-defence season, already losing three games in the Premier League -- as many losses as they suffered in the entire 2015-16 campaign.
However, Vardy and his teammates have picked up back-to-back wins on their debut year in the Champions League.