London, April 8 (IANS): English football club Arsenal's French coach Arsene Wenger has revealed he decided not to sign his compatriot midfielder Dimitri Payet, who now shines at West Ham, because of the latter's "inconsistency".

The 29-year-old midfielder, who joined West Ham last summer from French club Olympique Marseille, is one of the most excellent players this season in the English Premier League (EPL) after he scored 12 goals and made 11 assists.

"He has all the attributes to be a top, top player and he is that," the French coach said, according to Arsenal's official website on Thursday.

Arsenal will face West Ham in an EPL clash next week. Wenger explained that he had known Payet "for a long, long time."

"When he played at St. Etienne, he was there for a few years and we watched him many times," he said.

"He is 29 years old already, but this season he has matured a lot as he has come back into the national team when he looked to be out," Wenger added.

Payet started his career at Nantes, and then played for St Etienne, Lille and Marseille in France, before moving to the English club last summer.

Arsenal is in third place with 58 points, while West Ham is sixth in the EPL standings with 51 points.