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Arsène Wenger

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Arsène Wenger
Personal information
Full name Arsène Wenger
Height 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Position(s) Defender (retired)
Team information
Current team
 Arsenal (manager)

Arsène Wenger, OBE (born October 22, 1949 in Strasbourg) is a French football manager. He is currently the manager of Arsenal, where he has become the club's most successful manager in terms of trophies and the club's longest-serving manager in terms of matches played (over 600 as of March 2007).[1]

Wenger is the only non-British manager to win the Double in England, having done so in 1998 and 2002. In 2004, he became the only manager in FA Premier League history to go through the entire season without a loss.

Wenger has a degree in Engineering and a master's degree in Economics [2] from Strasbourg University and is fluent in French, German (especially its Alsatian dialect) and English; he also speaks some Italian, Spanish and Japanese.[3]

Playing career

Wenger's playing career was relatively inauspicious. He began as a defender or sweeper for various amateur clubs while studying at the Robert Schuman University, where he completed a master's degree in Economics in 1974.

Wenger turned professional in 1978, making his debut for RC Strasbourg against Monaco. He only made three appearances for the team as Strasbourg won the Ligue 1 title in 1978-79.[4] In 1981, he obtained a manager's diploma and was appointed the coach of the club's youth team.

Managerial career

Wenger's first senior management job was at Nancy, which he joined in 1984, but he enjoyed little success there. His managerial career took off when he became the manager of AS Monaco in 1987. He won the league in 1988 and the French Cup in 1991, and signed high-calibre players such as Glenn Hoddle, George Weah and Jürgen Klinsmann. Wenger turned down approaches by Bayern Munich and the France national team out of loyalty for Monaco,[5] only to be fired after a poor start to the 1994-95 season.[6] He moved on to a successful 18-month stint with the Japanese J. League team Nagoya Grampus Eight, with whom he won the Emperor's Cup, the national cup competition. He also took the club from the bottom three to runners-up position in the league.[5]

Wenger had in the meantime become a friend of the then Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein, after the two had met when Wenger attended a match between Arsenal and Queens Park Rangers in 1988.[7] After Bruce Rioch resigned in August 1996, Gérard Houllier, the then technical director of the French Football Federation, recommended Wenger to David Dein in the summer of 1996.[8] Arsenal confirmed his appointment on September 28 1996, and he officially took up the reins on October 1. Wenger was Arsenal's first manager from outside Great Britain or Ireland. Though he had been previously been touted as a potential Technical Director of the Football Association, at the time Wenger was a relative unknown in England.[9]

Even before he formally took control of the team, Wenger had started to shape it in his own way, having requested that the club sign French midfielders Patrick Vieira and Rémi Garde a month before he took charge. His first match in charge was a 2-0 win over Blackburn Rovers on October 12 1996. In his first season at the club, Arsenal finished third and missed out on Champions League qualification on goal difference.

In his second season in charge (1997-98), Arsenal won both the Premiership and FA Cup, the second Double in the club's history; it came after Arsenal made up a twelve point deficit on Manchester United to win the League title with two games to spare. Key to the success was the inherited back four of Tony Adams, Nigel Winterburn, Lee Dixon and Martin Keown, as well as Wenger's new midfield signings of Vieira, Emmanuel Petit and Marc Overmars, and teenage striker Nicolas Anelka's partnership with Dennis Bergkamp.

The following few seasons were comparatively barren, although Arsenal did come close several times. In 1999, they lost the Premiership title to Manchester United by a single point, and United also eliminated Arsenal in extra time of an FA Cup semi-final replay. This was followed by losing the UEFA Cup final to Galatasaray on penalties and the 2001 FA Cup final to Liverpool 2-1. Wenger resolved to bring new players to the squad, and with the controversial signing of Tottenham's Sol Campbell as well as first-team players such as Fredrik Ljungberg, Thierry Henry and Robert Pirès.

Although the new signings took a little time to adapt, they made sure that Wenger's Arsenal would achieve the double once more in the 2001-02 season. The crowning moment was the penultimate game of the season, against Manchester United; Sylvain Wiltord scored the only goal in the match to win the title. It was the club's third double, and Arsenal were undefeated in a record 23 matches away from home. After an incredible start to the 2002-03 season, Arsenal had looked as though they were going to retain the Premiership crown for the first time in their history. The team contributed and combined some irresistible, attacking football with pace and visionary skills. However, Manchester United overhauled the Gunners in the latter stage of the season to win the title, as Arsenal threw away a two-goal lead against Bolton Wanderers to draw 2-2 and then surrendered the title at home to Leeds United.

Arsenal were compensated with a FA Cup win in 2003, and the following season made history by winning the 2003-04 Premiership title in 2004 without a single loss, the first top-flight team to manage this feat since Preston North End in 1888-89. A year earlier, Wenger had been derided for saying it was possible Arsenal could go unbeaten in an entire season.[10]

With another FA Cup win in 2005, in all, Arsenal have won three Premier League titles and four FA Cups under Wenger, making him Arsenal's most successful manager in terms of trophies. However, the UEFA Champions League title still eludes him; the closest Arsenal have come was when they reached the final in 2005-06, the first time in club history, which they lost 2-1 to FC Barcelona.

In October 2004, he signed a contract extension that will keep him at Arsenal through the 2007-08 season. Former Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein has said Wenger has a "job for life" at Arsenal, and plans to offer Wenger a role on the Arsenal board once he has retired as a manager.[11]

Wenger's future as manager was thrust into question when staunch ally David Dein split from the Arsenal board on April 18, 2007. However, Wenger has confirmed that he will stay with the club till at least his current contract runs out in 2008.[12]

Accomplishments

Wikiquote has quotations related to Arsène Wenger.

Wenger has a reputation for unearthing talent and developing young players from across Europe and, in recent years, Africa. At Monaco, he brought Liberian George Weah, who later became FIFA World Player of the Year with AC Milan, from Cameroonian side Tonnerre Yaoundé. In his time at Arsenal, Wenger has signed young, relatively unknown players such as Patrick Vieira, Nicolas Anelka, Francesc Fàbregas, Kolo Touré and Robin van Persie, Emmanuel Eboue and Johan Djourou and transformed them all into world-class players. In particular, the defence which set a new record, after going ten consecutive games without conceding a goal on route to the UEFA Champions League 2005-06 final, cost Arsenal less than £5m to assemble.

Although Wenger has made some big-money signings for Arsenal, thanks to his talent-spotting ability, and the sale of several players for large fees after they had become established, his net spending record compares favourably with the large spending of some other leading Premiership clubs; according to Peter Hill-Wood, Arsenal chairman, "Arsène's basically spent, since he's been with us, £4m to £5m a year net." A notable example of this ability was the purchase of Nicolas Anelka from Paris St Germain for only £500,000 and his subsequent sale to Real Madrid just two years later for £22.3m. The money was used to buy three players — Thierry Henry, Robert Pirès and Sylvain Wiltord, who all played a significant role in the Double of 2001-02 and the league title win of 2003-04.

As well as finding new talent, he has also rejuvenated the careers of several established players who had lost form. Dennis Bergkamp, who had been signed by Arsenal a year before Wenger joined, reached his peak under Wenger's management. Wenger stood by captain Tony Adams after the latter admitted his alcoholism in 1996. Wenger's support was a key factor in Adams' rehabilitation and return to form, which extended his career by several years, and was rewarded as Adams led the club to two Doubles. Besides Adams, Wenger's training and dietary regime have also prolonged the careers of the other back four defenders Nigel Winterburn, Lee Dixon and Martin Keown; Wenger initially was planning to replace them but later realized that he did not need to. Similarly, Wenger also resurrected the career of his former protégé at Monaco, Thierry Henry, who had struggled to cope at Juventus but at Arsenal he became the club's all-time top scorer and captain.

Wenger has also reformed the training and dietary regimes, ridding the club of its drinking and junk-food culture. Wenger had a direct input into the design of the Gunners' new Emirates Stadium and its move to a new training ground at London Colney. He enjoys a great deal of popular support from among the Arsenal fanbase; the club's fans have put tremendous faith in the manager and his vision over the long term, as characterised by the popular saying among Gunners supporters — "Arsène Knows" — which is emphatically repeated many times on the banners seen in the Highbury crowd. This popularity has not spread to his colleagues in management, however: according to Harry Redknapp, he is the most disliked boss in the Premiership among fellow managers.[13]

For Arsenal's valedictory campaign at Highbury in 2005-06, supporters showed their appreciation for the manager by choosing "Wenger Day" as one of various "Themed Matchdays" proposed by the club in celebration of the team's move away from their historical ground. Wenger Day was held on his 56th birthday on October 22, 2005, during a match against Manchester City.[14]

Wenger reached his landmark 10th anniversary at the club in October 2006.

David Dein, former vice-chairman of Arsenal, has described Wenger as the most important manager in the club's history: "Arsene's a miracle worker. He's revolutionised the club. He's turned players into world-class players. Since he has been here, we have seen football from another planet."[15]

Awards

Wenger was awarded France's highest decoration, the Légion d'Honneur, in 2002. He was awarded an honorary OBE for services to British football in the Queen's Birthday Honours List of 2003, along with fellow Frenchman and then Liverpool manager Gérard Houllier.

In 2006, Wenger was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his achievements as a manager in the English game. He was the second foreign manager to be inducted to the Hall of Fame, after Italian-born Dario Gradi of Crewe Alexandra.

Controversies

Wenger's sides were often criticised for their indiscipline, receiving 52 red cards between 1996 and 2003.[16] After a contentious draw at Old Trafford in late 2003, however, Arsenal have rid themselves of the reputation. In 2004 and 2005 Wenger's Arsenal won the Premier League's Fair Play League tables for sporting behaviour.[17][18] In 2006 Arsenal finished second, behind Charlton Athletic.[19]

In 1999, Wenger offered Sheffield United F.C. a replay of their FA Cup 4th round game immediately after the match finished after Arsenal's winning goal scored by Marc Overmars had resulted from Kanu failing to return the ball to the opposition after it had been kicked into touch to allow a Sheffield United player to receive treatment for an injury. Arsenal won the replayed game 2-1.

He is also well known for his rivalry with Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson, as Arsenal and United were arch-rivals for the Premiership and FA Cup throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s. This rivalry reached its culmination in the infamous "Pizzagate" incident at Old Trafford in October 2004 after a 2-0 defeat, where after the match his Arsenal side threw food at the opposition in the tunnel, though Wenger claimed not to have seen it.[20] Ferguson is widely accepted to be a master of mind games. However, arguably, Ferguson subsequently met his match in mind games with Wenger.[21] Wenger was fined £15,000 for calling United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy "a cheat" in a post-match television interview. After he was fined he again called Van Nistelrooy a cheat, proving that, despite a fine, he firmly believed his claim.[22] Both managers have since agreed to tone down their words in an attempt to defuse the rivalry.[23]

During October and November 2005, Wenger became embroiled in a war of words with Chelsea manager José Mourinho. Mourinho accused Wenger of having an "unprofessional obsession" with Chelsea; he went as far as labelling Wenger a "voyeur",[24] and was quoted as saying, "He's worried about us, he's always talking about us - it's Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea". Wenger responded by pointing out he was only answering journalists' questions about Chelsea, and described Mourinho's attitude as "disrespectful". Mourinho has since been quoted as saying that he regrets the "voyeur" comment, and Wenger has accepted his apology.[25]

Wenger has often been criticised by other Premiership managers for not fielding many English players, particularly in the Champions League. West Ham United's former manager Alan Pardew said that Arsenal's Champions League success was "not necessarily a triumph for British football".[26] Wenger saw the issue of nationality as irrelevant: "When you represent a club it's about values and qualities, not about passports.".[27] Other pundits, including Trevor Brooking, the FA's Director of Football Development, defended Wenger; Brooking noted that a lack of English players in one of England's most successful clubs was more of a reflection of the talent pool in England rather than Wenger himself.[28]

On November 5 2006, Wenger was involved in a touchline bust-up with Alan Pardew in a Premier League match. After Marlon Harewood put West Ham ahead in the 89th minute, Pardew pumped his fist towards the Arsenal bench and ran into the Arsenal technical area to celebrate the goal. Wenger took exception to the behavior, and pushing and shoving ensued. Wenger refused to shake Pardew's hand at the end of the match. Skipping post-match interviews, he headed straight for the team coach. [29] He subsequently stated that he regretted reacting to the 'provocation' and that he accepted Alan Pardew's apology but he did not explicitly make his own apology. [30]

Wenger has also been involved in controversial statements about referees following matches in which decisions did not go his team's way.[31]. Following the Carling Cup Final 2007, he called a linesman a liar, leading to heavy criticism, an FA investigation[32] and a £2500 fine and a warning about his future conduct.[33]

Honours

Career honours

France RC Strasbourg

Winner

Managerial honours

France AS Monaco

Winner

Runner-Up

Japan Nagoya Grampus Eight

Winner

England Arsenal

Winner

Runner Up

Managerial stats

Team Nat From To Record
G W L D Win %
Nancy France 1984 1987 106 25 30 51 23.58
AS Monaco France 1987 1994 266 130 83 53 48.87
Nagoya Grampus Eight Japan 1994 1996 56 38 0 18 67.85
Arsenal England September 30 1996 Present 600 345 105 150 57.50
Career 1,028 538 218 272 52.33

References

  1. ^ In terms of length of tenure, George Allison's 13 years in charge of Arsenal between 1934 and 1947 is more than Wenger's 10½ (as of March 2007), but Allison's period included the entirety of the Second World War, where no official football was played, and thus Wenger has overseen more matches.
  2. ^ "A few things you may not know about Arsène Wenger". Football365.com.
  3. ^ "Amy Lawrence Q&A on Arsène Wenger". bbc.co.uk.
  4. ^ "Arsene Wenger factfile". Daily Mail.
  5. ^ a b "ESPNsoccernet: Arsene Wenger". ESPNsoccernet. Retrieved 2006-12-26.
  6. ^ http://au.sports.yahoo.com/060926/3/wkn2.html
  7. ^ "Ten Years of Wenger: a week of celebration". Arsenal.com. Retrieved 2006-10-09.
  8. ^ "Regrets? I've had more than a few, says title-chasing Wenger". Times Online. Retrieved 2006-10-23.
  9. ^ "Press at a glance: Tuesday 7 December 1998". ANR. Retrieved 2006-10-09.
  10. ^ Wenger's actual quote was: "It's not impossible. I know it will be difficult for us to go through the season unbeaten. But if we keep the right attitude it's possible we can do it." From: Lipton, Martin (September 21, 2002). "We Won't Lose One Match". The Mirror. pp. 78–79. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ "Dein: Wenger has job for life". Sky Sports.
  12. ^ http://www.premierleague.com/fapl.rac?command=setSelectedId&nextPage=enNewsLatest&id=1779114&type=com.fapl.website.news.NewsItem&categoryCode=NewsLatestFAPremierLeagueNews
  13. ^ "Arsenal's Wenger May Welcome Takeover by Kroenke". Bloomberg.
  14. ^ "It's Wenger Day at Highbury!". Arsenal.com.
  15. ^ "Arsenal sign Wenger with expert timing". Daily Telegraph.
  16. ^ "Wenger has no back-up plan". Irish Examiner.
  17. ^ "Fair Play to Gunners". The Football Association.
  18. ^ "Fair Play to Arsenal could see Spurs in Europe". BreakingNews.ie.
  19. ^ "Barclays Premiership 2005/06 Fair Play League" (PDF). Premierleague.com.
  20. ^ "Wenger: I didn't see tunnel fracas". Football365.
  21. ^ "Wenger wins mind games". BBC Sport. 8 May 2002.
  22. ^ "Wenger fined over Ruud outburst". BBC Sport.
  23. ^ "Wenger and Ferguson to end feud". BBC Sport.
  24. ^ "Mourinho labels Wenger a 'voyeur'". BBC Sport.
  25. ^ "Mourinho regrets 'voyeur' comment". BBC Sport.
  26. ^ "This was no English victory says Taylor". The Guardian.
  27. ^ "Arsenal vs Liverpool: Wenger defends his foreign legion". The Guardian.
  28. ^ "English kids are technically inferior, claims Brooking". Soccernet.
  29. ^ "Wenger rages at Pardew as Harewood goal stuns Arsenal". The Independent.
  30. ^ "Wenger 'provoked' in Pardew row". BBC Sport.
  31. ^ "FA quizzes Wenger about comments". BBC Website.
  32. ^ "Wenger out of order, says ex-ref". BBC Website.
  33. ^ "Wenger given fine & warning by FA". BBC Website.
Preceded by
Pat Rice (caretaker)
 Arsenal manager
October 1 1996 – 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by J. League Manager of the Year
1995 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Carling Manager of the Year
1998 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Barclaycard Manager of the Year
2002 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Barclaycard Manager of the Year
2004 		Succeeded by
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