Arsène Wenger biography: French Football Boss

Arsène Wenger biography

French Soccer Boss and EX football player

Emirates Stadium: Arsène Wenger biography

Emirates Stadium the ground of Arsenal, the side were Wenger has made his name.

Place of birth Strasbourg, France
Height 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Playing position Defender (retired)

Youth clubs

Arsène Wenger

As a player

Playing career
Wenger's playing career was 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. In 1981, he obtained a manager's diploma and was appointed the coach of the club's youth team.

1978-81 RC Strasbourg

Teams managed
AS Nancy
AS Monaco
Nagoya Grampus Eight
Arsenal

Managerial career

He is one of the most sucessful bosses in the Modern English league, and is one of the few bosses to have consistently posed a challenge to Man Utd.
Wenger's first senior management job was at Nancy, which he joined in 1984, but enjoyed little success there. His managerial career took off when he became the manager of AS Monaco in 1987. He won the league in 88 and the French Cup in 91, 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 to Monaco, only to be fired after a poor start to the 94-95 season. He moved on to a successful 18 month stint with the Japanese J. League team Nagoya Grampus Eight, with who 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.

Wenger in the meantime become a friend of then Arsenal vice chairman David Dein, after the two met when Wenger attended a match between Arsenal and QPR in 1988. After Bruce Rioch resigned in August 1996, Gérard Houllier, the technical director of the French Football Federation, recommended Wenger to David Dein in the summer of 1996. Arsenal confirmed his appointment on September 28, 1996, and he 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.

Even before he formally took control of the team, Wenger started to shape it in his own way, having requested 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 2nd 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 Man Utd 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 barren, although Arsenal did come close several times. In 1999, they lost the Premiership title to Man Utd by a single point, and Utd 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 time to adapt, they made sure 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 Man Utd: 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 though they were going to retain the Premiership crown for the first time in their history. The team contributed and combined irresistible, attacking football with pace and visionary skills. Man 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 Utd.

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 an entire season.

With another FA Cup win in 2005, in all, Arsenal 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 to 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 manager.

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

Arsène WengerWenger 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 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 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.

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 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 careers of several established players who 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 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. Wenger resurrected the career of his former protégé at Monaco, Thierry Henry, who 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 banners seen in the Highbury crowd.

For Arsenal's valedictory campaign at Highbury in 2005-06, supporters showed a 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 Man City.

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."

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 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 indiscipline, receiving 52 red cards between 1996 and 2003. 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. In 2006 Arsenal finished second, behind Charlton.

In 1999, Wenger offered Sheffield United FC 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 Man Utd manager Alex Ferguson, as Arsenal and Utd 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. Ferguson is widely accepted to be a master of mind games. However, arguably, Ferguson subsequently met his match in mind games with Wenger. Wenger was fined £15,000 for calling Utd striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, a cheat, in a post match television interview. After he was fined he again called Van Nistelrooy a cheat, proving, despite a fine, he firmly believed his claim. Both managers have since agreed to tone down words in an attempt to defuse the rivalry.

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", 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, a voyeur comment, and Wenger accepted his apology.

Wenger has 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 Arsenal's Champions League success was, not necessarily a triumph for British football. Wenger saw the issue of nationality as irrelevant:

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. He subsequently stated he regretted reacting to the provocation and that he accepted Alan Pardew's apology but he did not explicitly make his own apology.

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

Honours

Career honours

RC Strasbourg
Winner

1978-79 Ligue 1

Managerial honours

AS Monaco
Winner

1990-91 Coupe de France
1987-88 Ligue 1
1988 French Manager of the Year
Runner-Up

1988-89 Coupe de France
1990-91 Ligue 1
1991-92 Ligue 1
1991-92 Coupe de France
1991-92 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

Nagoya Grampus Eight
Winner

1995-96 J-League Super Cup
1995-96 Emperor's Cup
1995 J-League Manager of the Year

Arsenal
Winner

1997-98 FA Premier League
1997-98 FA Cup
1998 Carling Manager of the Year
1998-99 FA Charity Shield
1999-00 FA Charity Shield
2001-02 FA Premier League
2001-02 FA Cup
2002 Barclaycard Manager of the Year
2002-03 FA Community Shield
2002-03 FA Cup
2003-04 FA Premier League
2004 Barclaycard Manager of the Year
2004-05 Community Shield
2004-05 FA Cup
Runner Up

1998-99 FA Premier League
1999-00 FA Premier League
1999-00 UEFA Cup
2000-01 FA Premier League
2000-01 FA Cup
2002-03 FA Premier League
2003-04 FA Community Shield
2004-05 FA Premier League
2005-06 FA Community Shield
2005-06 UEFA Champions League
2006-07 Football League Cup

Soccer player

Misspell

Wennger Wengeer Wengir Arsene Wenger