“Arsene WhoIJ” That famous headline in a london newspaper welcomed the relatively unknown Arsene Wengerwhen he was appointed Arsenal manager in September 1996. Many players at the club had the same question on their lips when the Frenchman walked into the dressing room for the first time.
A little less than 18 years later, Wenger will take charge of his 1,000th game as Arsenal manager when his team plays at bitter rival Chelsea on Saturday. And despite the former Monaco coach inability to deliver a trophy since 2005, Wenger’s achievements in North london and his influence on English football have been immense.
Not only has Wenger presided over glory days at the club - Arsenal won three Premier league and four FA Cup titles under Wenger, including the double in 1998 and 2002 - he also achieved sporting and financial stability at Arsenal.
The club’s longest-serving manager is also widely credited for having radically changed the face of English football, bringing in new training methods and his famous broccoli diet while discouraging alcohol consumption. First regarded as something revolutionary, Wenger’s attention to detail quickly became popular among his players.
“At first, we didn’t really know who Arsene Wenger was,” said former England and Arsenal midfielder Ray Parlour.
“But we trusted (vice-chairman) David Dein at the time, him saying Arsene Wenger was going to push the club forward. And certainly after six weeks or so you could tell that he was a top-class manager. When Arsene Wenger first turned up, he took me to another level. His training methods were always great, he was on that pitch every single day, which is so important as a coach. He had lots and lots of brains about football and what he wanted to achieve.”