Arsene Wenger ‘amazed’ that he has to justify his standing at Arsenal
|Arsene Wenger has issued an ardent defence of his managerial status at Arsenal amid the lingering prospect of proposed talks with the club’s board at the end of the season, a series of discussions which could signal the end of his reign in the technical area at the Gunners.
Wenger has captained Arsenal’s helm for over two decades and has shepherded countless squads towards success during his illustrious tenure at both Highbury and the Emirates, although his leadership, after a string of unconvincing performances this term particularly, has been placed under scrutiny by the press, as well as by members of the club’s restless fan base.
The north-Londoners will face Manchester City on Thursday evening in the Premier League after being drubbed 3-0 by the Citizens in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday at Wembley, and ‘Le Prof’ is calling for a significant dose of redemption in order to douse the flames surrounding his under-fire future.
After being quizzed about the supposed end-of-season reviews by Sky Sports’ Chief News Reporter Bryan Swanson, the French boss said – via a report published by inews:
“My position is my position. That’s the last worry I have at the moment. My focus is to get the team ready for tomorrow’s game.
“I don’t ask you if your position is under review at the end of the season.
“My job is to focus on performing, my job is to perform and it is for other people to judge me. It’s not up to me to evaluate that.”
Wenger was then asked to whether he thought he would survive past the current campaign, and he abruptly replied:
“I just gave you the answer. If you need clarity I can repeat the same answer. Does it stop you from sleeping that my position is uncertain, or would not be certain, or is certain? No.
“What is interesting in football is the performance. The game on Thursday night is what’s important, all the rest makes headlines but it’s not really interesting.”
An ‘amazed’ Wenger then directed his attention back towards Swanson and proceeded to scoff:
“I’m just amazed that I have to always answer things that are exactly the same.
“I’m here for 21 years, I turned the whole world down to respect my contracts, so I’m amazed that I still have to answer these kind of questions.”