Further success is all that matters: Wenger

Mark Bradley

Wenger’s 500th game comes tomorrow at Chelsea, when his burning ambition to regain ground on Jose Mourinho’s side will consume his focus amid his self-confessed addiction to the game.

Having arrived at Highbury billed as ‘Arsene Who?’ in 1996, Wenger has since won three titles, four FA Cups and four Charity Shields, as well as going through an entire league campaign unbeaten.

With many managerial awards as well, his home could be littered with memorabilia from a successful career, which has included spells in France and Japan. That, however, is simply not his style.

“I do not have one piece on show at home from my whole career, because I’m only concerned by what’s happening tomorrow. In our job, you always have to worry about the future,” he revealed. “I have the medals at home, but I couldn’t tell you where they are. There are some here, some there, but I have no safe. I’m just not interested in all that.

“I’m only concerned by the Chelsea game. I feel lucky in this job to make 500 games but I’ve never been a big fan of looking back. I just try to use history to be better tomorrow. I don’t think that I’ve won this or that. In fact, I’m more concerned by what I’ve lost.”

Wenger has therefore had “89 worst moments” at Arsenal, the number of defeats in all competitions from his 499 games in charge. Some have inevitably been worse than others, such as defeat in the UEFA Cup final in 2000, losing two Champions League quarter-finals and a 6-1 rout at Old Trafford, as well as an FA Cup final defeat by Liverpool.

However, it was perhaps telling that Wenger actually found it easier to identify those games, rather than individual high points, although the unbeaten league campaign is rated as his best memory of all.

“You always strive for perfection and the closest we got to that was when we played the whole season unbeaten,” he concluded.

Otherwise, Wenger has simply been committed to producing entertaining football, although his ambitions remain as lofty and unabashed as ever.

“My dream still is to win the championship, to play quality football, to win the European Cup, to go into the new stadium with a big team and to make Arsenal the biggest club in the world. It’s a simple job!” So after almost nine years at the club, what drives him on?

“I love football,” he replied simply.

“It’s like someone who loves cards, he likes to play the next hand. It’s like someone who gambles, he likes his next visit to the casinos. I’m like that. I’m not interested in what lies behind me. It’s all about the next game.”

That next game comes at Stamford Bridge, with Wenger’s record of never having lost a league game to Chelsea being put to a stiff test.

“It is a massive game. First because we want to win the title and, to do so, you exist in big games. At the end of the season, these points will count double,” he said.

“Your strength and dominance in the league comes down to how well you do in these games. To get a big result, you first need to believe and I’ll do everything possible to strengthen that belief before the game. I’m am not at all a comedian, I just feel this team has the quality to do well at Chelsea and win the game.”

When Wenger arrived at Highbury, he had to break the domination of Manchester United on the Premiership. Now he is faced with a similar challenge by Chelsea.

However, he insisted: “The dominance of Chelsea is not comparable to Manchester United’s, although maybe it will happen. United were an exceptional bunch of players together coming from the youth system, all British, and they had something special that made them up for it in every game. It will happen only once in every 100 years.”