Arsenal legend Robert Pires and Owen Hargreaves excited ahead of NBA London

The former Premeir League rivals will both be at the game at The O2

(NBAE//Getty Images)

Former Premier League stars Robert Pires and Owen Hargreaves ave revealed their excitement ahead of the NBA game in London on Thursday night.

Hargreaves, who won the Champions League with Bayern Munich and Manchester United, also revealed that he wanted to be a basketball player, rather than a footballer, as a yuongster.

"I seriously did," he said when asked if he wanted to play the game professionally. "Before going to Bayern Munich I played more basketball than football. I would play football probably twice a week, but I’d play basketball every day after school with my high school team.

"Football was in my genes, my dad played, my older brother played and as a young guy you want to be like your dad and your brother. And I think Steve [Nash] is the same. He wanted to play football. His brother played for the Canadian national team, so were kind of the opposite. He wanted to play football and I wanted to play basketball. This is probably why we connected.

"But it’s going to be a beautiful game. It’s going to be fun to see the guys come over here."

Hargreaves, who also won 42 caps for England, added:" I love basketball and I love watching the highlights of the game, I have the subscription with the NBA League Pass and it is the first thing I check in the morning: NBA.com and the top10.

"So, to see the game live here is great, because if you think about it, I can’t see Liverpool or Manchester United or Arsenal to go play a home game in New Jersey, but the NBA is trying to make the game more global. So I think it’s great for these fans to see the best of the best play basketball in London."

Robert Pires was part of the 'Invincible' Arsenal team that won the 2004 Premier League title without losing a game, his second title in north London.

"I love basketball, I love the NBA," the World Cup and European Championship winner said. "France has a good basketball league, so I grew up with basketball and football, so I’m happy to see the game on Thursday and I thank the NBA for this game and this show. I always take the opportunity to see an NBA game in London."

Pires added that he didn't support but followed the numerous French players in the league - Evan Fournier will be starting for the Magic on Thursday.

"Being French, I follow all the French players in the NBA: Evan Fournier, Joakim Noah, Boris Diaw… Obviously I think the best French player is Anthony Parker. And I’m happy because this is an opportunity for the French people as well to see the NBA, which is the best league in the world."

The Orlando Magic host the Toronto Raptors at The O2 in London on January 14 as part of NBA Global Games London 2016. The game is live on BT Sport 1 and BT Sport Showcase or via NBA LEAGUE PASS and will be screened live at 31 ODEON cinemas around the country.