The impact of Arsene Wegner on English Football will never be really felt until he has long departed these shores. He arrived as a virtual unknown at Highbury in September 1996, with the club in a downward spiral after the George Graham era had ended in disgrace and Bruce Rioch had failed to satisfy the ambitions of the club in the new Premier League era.
But if we look back to the state of English Football when “Le Professeur” arrived on these shores in 1996 it is hard to think it is the same game. Wenger became only the second foreign manager in the Premier League in 1996/97, joining Ruud Gullit at Chelsea. Ninety percent of Premier League managers were British. Today this percentage has dropped to fifty percent. His
Wenger revolutionized Arsenal from head to toe. He introduced a focus on player’s diet, fitness and conditioning. He brought in regular psychometric testing on his squad to ensure they are still mentally as well as physically fit for his side. He soon started bringing in influential players who would transform Arsenal into one of the most feared sides in Europe. A 20 year old Patrick Viera was the first Wenger signing, completing his move even before Arsene arrived in the marble halls and going on to be an Arsenal legend. Thierry Henry was transformed from a hit and miss wide player into one of the most feared strikers in the world.
In 1998, less than two years in the role, he became the first non-British manager to win the domestic League and Cup double. The two further titles (including another double) and the remarkable forty nine games without defeat the team delivered in 2004 certainly put the cat amongst the Old Trafford pigeons and started a long (and sometimes bitter) rivalry with Sir Alex Ferguson. But the Scot, underneath the surface, has long enjoyed his sparring with the Frenchman and is one of his fiercest allies when knives are drawn on Arsene.
Wenger only took the role at Arsenal on the condition he could have an input into matters off the field. He took the decision to move the Arsenal training ground before being instrumental in the decisions around the move to the Emirates stadium in 2006. Even today he is making decisions about the club such as vetoing a plan to host 2015 Rugby World Cup games at the stadium.
His legacy on our game will live long after he departs the Arsenal hotseat as one of the most cerebral coaches in the world game, a tactical thinker who believed football should be played on the ground by teams who want to attack. Today, the likes of Brendan Rodgers, Pep Guardiola and Nigel Adkins have all taken inspiration from Wenger’s strategy, as well as one of the most revolutionary figures in US Sport, Billy Beane, the main character in the 2010 film Money Ball. When the day comes when he finally announces his departure, football will never be the same again.
