When Arsenal picked Arsene Wenger the British Press mocked them
Arsène Wenger has been manger of Arsenal for 20 years. The 66-year-old manager joined the club on this day 1996.
The Sunday Mirror took the rise out of this new foreign manager, rolling it eyes and wishing the club the best of luck “persuading us that the lanky M’sieur Wenger, despite sounding like Rory Bremner auditioning for ‘Allo ‘Allo, is ‘ow you say fantastique!”. That the British media had not heard of Wenger was a sign of their parochialism. “Arsene who?” quipped the Standard, a new take on “Dr Who?”, the question asked by the Press when Aston Villa hired Dr Josef Venglos in 1990.
George Weah had explained who Wenger was one year earlier at the Fifa World Footballer of the Year award, stating: “Arsène Wenger made me not just the player I am today, but also the man I am.”
WEnger was far from unfazed. “I felt quite a lot of scepticism,” he said. “That’s normal, especially on an island. This phenomenon is more emphasised on an island because people have historically lived more isolated. They are more cautious about foreign influences.”
In Wenger’s first full season, Arsenal on The Double.
And then? Well, his Arsenal side has never finished outside the top 4. But after a decade of success, recent years have hardly been filled with glory:
And now? Well, Arsenal fans will miss him when he’s gone.
Posted: 22nd, September 2016 | In: Arsenal, Back pages, Sports Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
