London [United Kingdom], May 4 : The most decorated manager in Arsenal's history Arsene Wenger reflected back on the sacrifices he had to make to become one of the most successful managers in the history of the Premier League.
During the 2023 Premier League Hall of Fame event in London, Arsene shared a few memories of his golden days with the Gunners and how he kept his 2003/04 team to believe in the dream of becoming invincible.
"I realise now, five years on [from retirement], I was an mal," he told the audience. "I had to sacrifice so much. I'm a normal human being again now. I thought after we won [the title] in 2002, 'What can we do better?'" he said. "I said stupidly in a press conference that I think we can go unbeaten. We, of course, lost the next season," Wenger said during the 2023 PL Hall of Fame as quoted by Premier League.
"In pre-season, I went away and asked the players, 'Why did we lose?' They said, 'Because of you! You put too much pressure on us. You either say, 'OK, sorry,' or you say, 'No, you can really do it.' That's the way I went. I discovered what's it like to become a manager without fear. Before the game, we were totally relaxed. We went to another level, almost above ego," Wenger added.
Sir Alex and Arsene are the first managers to recieve the highest individual honour awarded by the league. Arsene Wenger has managed for 22 consecutive seasons which is a Premier League record. During his era, he won three Premier League titles and achieved one of the rarest feats in the history of football.
Arsenal's 2003/04 team achieved the title of invincible as they remained undefeated in the entire season. This iconic team included the likes of Thierry Henry, Robert Pires, Freddie Ljungberg, Dennis Bergkamp, Ashley Cole, Gilberto Silva, Sol Campbell and Patrick Vieira.
The Frenchman went on to manage a record 828 Premier League matches, which included 476 wins and 199 draws. He was voted Manager of the Season in 1998, 2002 and 2004. Throughout his tenure with Arsenal, Wenger always remained loyal to the club as well as to the fans.
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