Arsenal Wenger ‘sets the date’ for Arsenal departure but keeps everyone guessing
How do you follow Sam Allardyce? With a broom, perhaps. The Football Association has a better idea: wait for caretaker boss Gareth Southgate to fail and then appoint Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger. The BBC says that’s the plan. The London Evening Standard agrees. It’s Wenger for England.
Wenger’s current Arsenal contract expires at the end of this season. Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke and the club’s chief executive Ivan Gazidis want him to sign a new deal.
The FA has chased Wenger for some time. The Telegraph says Wenger was the FA’s first choice to succeed Roy Hodgson after the European Championship. But they failed to get him.
The Daily Star says Wenger will say ‘yes’ if the FA ask him again: “EXCLUSIVE: Arsene Wenger open to becoming England boss.” The exclusive is anything but. While “Starsport understands the Arsenal boss is interested in taking charge in the build-up to the 2018 World Cup in Russia”, Wenger tells Sky Sports: “My priority is always Arsenal and I have to assess how well I do until the end of the season.”
Mentions of England by Wenger: nil.
Put that through the headline generator and the Mail delivers: “Arsene Wenger keeps door open for England job.”
The apogee of no-news is in the Independent, which declares, “Arsenal could be poised to extend Arsene Wenger’s contract with the club after the Frenchman was linked to the new England job.”
The media has no idea what Wenger will do next. Well, all apart from the Mirror:
Such are the facts.
Posted: 29th, September 2016 | In: Arsenal, Back pages, Sports Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
