After 1,235 games in charge of the 'Gunners', Wenger's time at the club has come to an end and he admits that he doesn't quite know what to do with himself.
“It’s just too soon to know what I will do next,” he explained. “I haven’t even emptied my desk yet and in a way I am still in a state of shock. I am going to give myself until June 14, the day the World Cup begins, to decide. The question is do I still want to coach, to be on the bench, or is it time to take up different functions? The one thing I can say for sure is that I will continue to work.
“But do I want to continue to suffer as much? I want to continue to defend my ideas of football, that’s for sure. Spontaneously, I would say I still want to coach but I can’t really say that yet for sure.”
Despite having worked non-stop for 34 years and being more than financially secure, Wenger says there is no chance of him putting his feet up any time soon.
“I have friends who can go and lay on a beach all day long for the whole of their holidays and I envy them,” he joked.
“I just can’t do that. I get bored. I need to be doing something. I need a challenge. I have lived and breathed football all these years and it’s a passion – I can’t imagine doing anything else. That’s why in a way this is an exciting moment for me, too. I have a new page, a blank page in front of me. As all good writers know, that can be a time of anguish but I hope I won’t have too much of that. It’s also a chance to write new chapters.”
Finally, Wenger gave his thoughts on his Arsenal farewell and the tributed he has received.
“It was very touching to see,” he admitted. “It has been a strange period – switching from contestation to unanimity in just a few days. Surprising, but quite nice also. I have the impression people wanted to salute my longevity, my fidelity to my club and perhaps the ideas about football I always tried to defend. I take it as a sign of recognition for the total commitment I have always had towards values I hold dearly – the desire to play dynamic, attacking football with a certain idea of how to go about it, too.
“My type of loyalty probably doesn’t exist any more. Maybe the dinosaur I became was the last symbol of times that have changed. We are today in a society which is so quick to reject. There is no time to build, to construct, always this demand for results immediately. Maybe people wanted to manifest that too.
“It was nice to see some of the recognition, I admit. When I arrived, you know, I was a complete unknown and I have always had the impression I am representing my country in a way. In a land where there has always been so much animosity between the English and the French I am proud to have achieved certain things and perhaps to have opened doors for other French coaches. Don’t forget, when I arrived in England a foreign manager was a very rare thing.”