Thread by @Twt_ArsenalMY

Arsene Wenger by John Cross.

To understand the job Arsene Wenger has done, you first need to understand the club he was walking into back in 1996. And only then can you begin to appreciate the scale of his achievement and the transformation he has made.

Arsenal were looking for a new manager after one of the most turbulent periods in the club’s history. George Graham, a member of Arsenal’s 1971 Double-winning team, was sacked in February 1995 after a bung scandal, following revelations that he had taken unsolicited payments.

But his nine-year reign ended in disgrace and finished with a team in decline, a difficult dressing room run by egos, and a squad used to playing dull football which had revelled in the fans’ chant: ‘One-nil to the Arsenal.’

Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood met Wenger in his favourite Italian restaurant, Ziani’s, just off the King’s Road in London. Hill-Wood recalls being impressed with Wenger, but had major concerns about him largely because he was foreign.

There is no doubt that his early days at Arsenal were a test. Wenger was a world away from what the players were used to. The board also.

The similarity of his first name to that of the club must surely be a sign – a bit like the once-a-year punter taking a gamble on a horse’s name in the Grand National, surely they could see that Arsene was the man for Arsenal? But, of course, his name was not known in England.

It’s become an urban myth that the London Evening Standard carried a headline of ‘Arsene Who?’ to greet Wenger’s arrival.

The article asked: ‘How should the name be pronounced – both of them? If you are French, you will probably address him as Ar-senn Won-jair.'

Wenger inherited a dressing room with a drinking culture, big egos, strong characters and players who had proved difficult to control. In fact, Arsenal probably had some of the most renowned hard drinkers in English football.

‘He changed it with diet, the way he treated and spoke to the players. He made us stretch before games, after games, after and before every training session.'

'English football has so much to thank him for, he really did change the face of so many things – training, preparation and the way the game was played. It was incredible.’

Wenger's first game was at Blackburn on 12 October 1996. Arsenal didn’t play particularly well. In fact, Ian Wright scored early on, but Blackburn went on to be the better team and were unlucky to still be behind at half time.

The Arsenal players went into the dressing room, expecting the worst. They feared Wenger would immediately tear into them. The opposite happened. According to one of the players in the dressing room, it was a full eight minutes before Wenger spoke.

Even Rice, by all accounts, found Wenger’s silence unnerving, but it had a calming effect. Arsenal went out for the second half, Wright got another goal shortly after the restart and Arsenal won the game 2-0.

The Wenger legend, the Wenger effect and the Wenger story had begun.

Still today, Wenger often says nothing even after the heaviest or most demoralising of defeats. He would rather sit back, digest, collect his thoughts, and then have a debrief at the training ground.

Dressing-room etiquette is something that Wenger clearly thinks deeply about and, in particular, a manager’s conduct, his behaviour towards the players, how best to motivate or lift them.

Former Arsenal striker John Hartson said: ‘He gave the players great contracts, gave them new deals, gave them extensions, more money, and they did the business for him. They won him titles.'

'They were loyal to him and they repaid his faith. He is very loyal to players. Players respond to that. He wants to reward them. It’s a real big part of his philosophy.’

Wenger pushed hard to get a new state-of-the-art training ground built in its place. In fact, he made it a point of principle: ‘Without an assurance of that freedom and control, I would not have stayed,’ he later said.

It was built at a cost of £12 million and paid for out of the funds raised by Nicolas Anelka’s sale to Real Madrid. Wenger, naturally, took a personal interest in the development, even choosing the cutlery in the canteen and the chairs.

There are no locks on locker doors, as Wenger believes it will stop communication among players because the doors will stop them seeing each other and conversation.

**Someone has tweeted that the training ground is like his baby.

Arsene Wenger had become the first foreign manager to win the Premier League. It set him apart as a trailblazer and this, together with a fascination for his style of play, his amusing soundbites and cutting remarks, suddenly made him the new king of the back page.

His regular jousts with Alex Ferguson were entertaining and brutal, and the press were lapping them up. For the neutral as well as the dyed-in-the-wool fan, Arsenal represented a refreshing change from Manchester United’s dominance.

They had gone from being ‘boring, boring Arsenal’ to the most entertaining and attractive team in the Premier League. It’s easy to forget now, but it should be remembered that Wenger was, in his early days, a revolutionary.

Robert Pires admitted it was Wenger who persuaded him to join Arsenal and helped him become a world-class player. ‘In 2000, Madrid wanted me. But Arsenal wanted me too and I chose London because of Wenger. I spoke to him lots of times.'

I knew what he wanted and I knew that I would play. Madrid is a great club, of course, but it’s a club with little stability. Everyone thought I was on my way to Madrid but I didn’t want that.'

‘It was an honour to work with Arsene Wenger every day. He was such a great teacher, Le Professeur. He always taught you something, tactically or technically. Without doubt, the best years of my career were with him at Arsenal between 2000 and 2006.’

The FA Cup final of 2002 was particularly memorable because Arsenal beat Chelsea on a gloriously sunny Saturday – and then had a title decider at Old Trafford the following Wednesday when they knew victory over Manchester United would win them the Double.

After that FA Cup final, Arsenal were buzzing. Rarely do you go to a game at Manchester United with such a strong feeling that the away team will win. Arsenal were that strong, that dominant and that good. It didn’t seem in doubt. Victory looked inevitable.

Arsenal had to make changes, with Thierry Henry, Tony Adams and Dennis Bergkamp dropping out, but they were able to bring in Martin Keown, Edu and Kanu. United were fired up, and Paul Scholes, Phil Neville and Roy Keane were all lucky not to see red in a frantic opening 45 mins.

Sir Alex Ferguson was determined that United would not roll over. But Parlour recalls that night at Old Trafford as one of the best experiences of his career as Sylvain Wiltord scored the 55th-minute winner, pouncing on a rebound after Fabien Barthez saved from Ljungberg.

Parlour said: ‘United were desperate, absolutely desperate, to beat us. We played so well. It was one of the best weeks of my career because I got Man of the Match at Old Trafford. I scored in the cup final then got Man of the Match on the Wednesday when we won the league.'

'It meant we won the Double, so you can’t get much of a better week than that.’

Arsenal went into 2002/03 as Double winners and full of confidence, playing with a style and swagger which saw them make a sensational start to the season.

It was such a good start that one of the journalists who regularly covers Arsenal, the Daily Star’s David Woods, went as far as to ask Wenger whether he thought they could go through an entire season unbeaten.

Woods recalls: ‘You could tell Wenger was not sure whether to go for it, but after a slight hesitation he gave the answer we did not expect. Yes, he insisted, it could be done and that other top managers, including Sir Alex Ferguson, felt the same but were too scared to say so.

To go unbeaten was a remarkable first in Premier League history and is the biggest testament – and tribute – to Wenger’s reign as Arsenal manager. They were solid defensively, creative in midfield and had the most lethal striker in the world.

The Invincibles was Wenger’s ultimate team, coming together with pace, power, experience and youth, and the spirit within the camp gave them an unbelievable never-say-die determination.

The Invincibles season surely remains Wenger’s greatest achievement and the fact that no one has been able to emulate it – despite Chelsea and Manchester United both dominating the league – only goes to show how impressive a feat it was.

Looking back, Wenger still feels an immense sense of pride at the achievement of going 38 league games unbeaten.

‘At the time when you do it, it just looks normal and natural. When I look back at the photos today and I see the quality of each player, I think that’s where you realise that it was an exceptional team. Not only those who played regularly, but also those who were on the bench.'

‘It had never been done in the Premier League until then, I can’t remember anybody winning the championship without losing a game. I’m very proud of that because there’s not a lot of room to do better. Apart from that, the quality of the players I had was absolutely exceptional.’

Last home game for Arsene Wenger. Emirates Stadium was a gift from him. Not literally, but because of him, we managed to get a new stadium.

This is going to be a very emotional day. #MerciArsene

Despite the new stadium costing £390mil Arsenal maintained that Arsene Wenger was ‘never denied funds’ when he asked to sign players. Quite simply, that is because Wenger was aware of the finances, the budget, his limitations, so never asked for what he knew wouldn’t be realistic

Consequently, he was never denied any funds. But it was a clever statement because it made it sound as if the new stadium didn’t affect Wenger’s budget at all. And that was far from the truth.

Wenger is unlike many managers in that he has one eye on the accounts at all times, so he knew whether a transfer target was realistic or not.

It is interesting that, before the move to the Emirates Stadium was planned, Wenger would simply identify a player and David Dein would go to try to do a deal, telling his manager the club would worry about the cost.

Each season, Wenger would sit down with Dein and managing director Keith Edelman. The trio would discuss transfer targets, fees, whether they were available. Up until 2003, Arsenal were able to compete with their Premier League rivals when it came to transfer fees and contracts.

Now, suddenly, they were working on a completely different budget. Wenger became more aware of transfer fees, contracts and costs because he knew exactly what was available. All of a sudden he was working under new financial restrictions and Wenger understood the situation.

But for many football fans working within a budget is seen as far worse than being rash with transfer spending.

Arsenal could offer a state-of-the-art training ground and 21st-century stadium – but after 2005 no trophies until 2014. There was little Wenger could do to stop haemorrhaging talent.

Arsenal could offer a state-of-the-art training ground and 21st-century stadium – but after 2005 no trophies until 2014. There was little Wenger could do to stop haemorrhaging talent.

Today is the last game in the house that Arsene Wenger helped build. Really, there’s no manager in the modern era anywhere in the world so associated with a stadium, with that only emphasising how deeply important he was to Arsenal for so long.

Beyond anything, the stadium stands as the ultimate testament to Wenger's influence on the club, to that sensational and genuinely game-changing success he enjoyed in his first decade at Arsenal.

The first and last scorer to play for Arsenal under Arsene Wenger. @IanWright0 and @Aubameyang7

#MerciArsène

The one and only golden trophy. He created The Invincibles.

He is holding this trophy again, for one last time.

#MerciArsène

Arsene Wenger clearly loves @Arsenal and the players. Even on his last day as the manager at The Emirates, he wished the club well, he asked the fans to get behind the players, to support them. He did not even say anything about his achievements or about himself.

#MerciArsène

The journey is about to end ..........

Other managers would've thrown their own players if they made mistakes, did not perform. But not Arsene Wenger. Never. He would stand for them, he took all the critics and backlashes for his players. He took the fall.

He protected his players. Even though sometimes, his players 'stabbed' him behind his back. But being a classy man, he remains being professional on and off the pitch.

He loves his players, his players love him. This is a better love story than Twilight! Or any other love stories.

Wenger's affections towards his players were clearly shown here. No wonder former and current players see him as a father figure.

He motivated his players to give their best and fight until the last blood, until the final whistle. Arsene Wenger is an inspiration!

Glorious days

Nobody can deny he is the best man has ever managed Arsenal.

But there were also bad days. It's not always shiny. There were times when Arsene Wenger had to face rainy days, hurricanes, tsunamis.

Many wanted his head on the plate when Arsenal endured trophyless seasons. Wenger Out was serenaded everytime we finished the season empty-handed.

But he showed perseverance. Arsene Wenger remained positive and he knew Arsenal would lift a trophy eventually. He was right. We won our first FA Cup after 3,283 days and 512 games. Our barren years had come to an end.

FINALLY.

His iconic jackets. He nailed this fashion, this look without even trying.

Except when he wanted to zip it 😂

Arsene Wenger and Arsenal players were once invited to the palace to meet the Queen. It was an honour because not everyone will have this chance to meet Queen Elizabeth. And everyone knows Arsene Wenger is a French guy and most of his players weren't from England or UK.

Tell me, who would've given young, unknown players the chance to shine and become a proper football player like Wenger gave to these players?

He believes in his players, nonmatter how young they are! Wenger gives them plenty of chances and guidance.

When the fans had lost faith in some of Arsenal players, or never heard of their names, or never had faith in them, Wenger would still give his undivided support.

Even The King came back for him

Highbury was our home but this man gave us a new home which is bigger and more comfortable.

It's safe to say he gave his all to make sure banks approved the loans to build The Emirates Std - he signed a long term contract, he endured trophyless seasons, we lost our best players

Can your manger pull off this suave look?

Confident is the key!

Jubilant Arsene Wenger

Arsene Wenger through the years

Wenger’s intelligence goes way beyond your average football manager. He surely is The Intelligent One. You always have the feeling that he has a depth of knowledge about many subjects.

He speaks several languages: English – even if occasionally idiosyncratic and often punctuated by strange Wengerisms like ‘footballistically’, which probably means addressing an issue in football terms – as well as German, Spanish, some Japanese and, of course, French.

He is quick-witted, well-informed and interesting – far removed from the typical tracksuited football manager, barking orders at players and trying to motivate them.

Clearly, Wenger believes in a combination of coaching, fitness work and psychology – and in keeping up with new developments in these areas – to get the best out of his players, and he is particularly keen on giving the younger ones their chance to shine.

The best moments are every important game you win and the worst moment is every defeat, basically, because I experience every defeat like a death. Defeat has to hurt you very much to survive in this job because you learn a lot about yourself. Every defeat is terrible in our job.

We haven’t won the title since 2004 and last year we were not in contention, so I can understand that completely. It’s down to us to create that belief for our performances, we can only do that.

Wenger had taken charge of his 1,010th Arsenal game in the FA Cup final and it did feel like a new page was about to be turned. Wenger said at the time: ‘I want to stay and to continue to develop the team and the club. We are entering a very exciting period.'

'We have a strong squad, financial stability and huge support around the world. We are all determined to bring more success to this club. The club has always shown faith in me and I’m very grateful for that.'

'We have gone through fantastic periods and also periods where we have had to stick together. Every time when that togetherness was tested I got the right response. I think I have shown some loyalty as well towards this club and hopefully we can make some more history.'

While Wenger’s own loyalty deserves respect, one former colleague puts it perfectly. ‘I think he is an outstanding manager. But he is what I term a micromanager. He manages a lot of very small things so he worries about one hell of a lot of quite small details.'

'He’s not a great delegator, not good at getting people around him. But he’s a brilliant, brilliant manager. But he’s not a good strategist in terms of his squad. That’s one of his failings.'

Arsene Wenger is at his best when his back is against the wall. It makes him more determined and defiant, while his teams often tend to dig out results when they need them most. He also seems to relish the gallows humour that goes with being under pressure in football.

When Arsenal had, what Wenger might describe as ‘a little wobble’ after the turn of the year in the 2014/15 season, the familiar rumblings from supporters could be heard again, especially after they lost 3-1 at home to Monaco at the end of February.

That defeat brought about the familiar frustrations and questions as to whether it was time for Wenger to stand aside. Wenger is not foolish. He hears the supporters’ moans and groans – even if he often chooses to ignore them.

At one of the increasing number of question-and-answer sessions for well-heeled executive fans to keep them onside, Wenger displayed his familiar sense of humour when a supporter asked whether he had an exit strategy.

It highlighted just what a family club Arsenal is and how they try to make their players feel part of it. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Arsenal have always prided themselves on being a club with class and tradition, they tell the players to behave with manners.

And, without question, Wenger has bought into that tradition, embraced it and promoted it to his players. It is part of his philosophy on and off the pitch. The atmosphere in the dressing room is one of camaraderie and togetherness.

In Wenger’s mind, it helps performances because the teamwork is there and they gel on and off the pitch. When there have been a couple of rotten apples in the dressing room, it has tended to coincide with disappointing seasons. They have been moved on quickly.

Wenger had also found a happy balance between homegrown players, clever signings and big stars like Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil. The blend of developing young players, shrewd signings and world-class talent has provided him with a great squad.

From the bottom of our hearts, we TwtArsenalMY want to say thank you to Arsene Wenger for managing the club we love the most, @Arsenal. He also turned this great club into one of the best clubs in the world. He has given absolutely everything for the club, staff, players and fans

For the joy, for the tears, for the sweat, for the blood, for the smile, for the respect given by every football supporters, for the banter and embarrassment we had to endure, for the trophies and countless records made, for every single thing,

Thank you, Arsene Wenger.

You could've left us easily and went to other clubs like Real Madrid, Man Utd, Bayern Munich and many more, you had the chance to manage The Galacticos, and would be supported with millions of dollars to buy any player you desired,

But you stayed. You were fiercely loyal.

You were humiliated by the press, by our rivals and their managers, and worse, by our own fans. But you held your high up and swallowed everything. Never once you abandoned the ship, never once you threatened to leave us. You kept fighting and delivered your goals.

3 FA Cups in 4 years said it all. It was one of the best moments in recent years. We were no longer expertise in failures. We played beautiful football, we started to sign world-class and amazing players. We started to compete with them financially.

It's because of you.

One Arsene Wenger. There's only one Arsene Wenger. Though thick and thin, you stayed with us, with the club. We're forever in your debt, Arsene Wenger.

You are not bigger than the club, but the club are bigger because of you, Let Prof.

#MerciArsène

Last game for the man we all love, respect and adore. You'll be missed, Arsene Wenger.

I'm not crying. You're crying!

#MerciArsène

Wenger's last game for Arsenal:

Arsenal won 1-0 against Huddersfield. Aubameyang scored the only goal. Line-up : Ospina, Bellerin, Holding, Mustafi, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Ramsey, Aubameyang, Iwobi, Mkhitaryan, Lacazette.

Final substitution was AMN.

1-0 TO THE ARSENAL!