Fergie is 'Manager of the Year', says Wenger

Arsene Wenger admits Alex Ferguson would get his vote as manager of the year.

The Arsenal boss decided against nominating Chelsea counterpart Jose Mourinho, despite his side's bid for an unprecedented quadruple which included a Carling Cup final victory over the Gunners.

Instead, when asked for his opinion on the Premiership's top boss this season, he said United chief Ferguson and Steve Coppell, manager of the season's surprise package Reading, deserve recognition for their current campaigns.

Wenger and Ferguson have had their disagreements in the past but, asked who should be named manager of the year, the Frenchman said: "I feel this year Sir Alex Ferguson, because he's in a position to fight on every front, and Steve Coppell, who is in a position where nobody expected him to be and has a team who does not play negatively - they have a positive attitude everywhere they go."

Wenger, meanwhile, admits that the season has petered out into a big let-down for his youthful side following last term's march to the Champions League final.

"This year we had a massive disappointment, I feel overall, especially in going out of the Champions League the way we went out," he told the League Managers' Association website, www.leaguemanagers.com.

"But it's part of a growing process as well to handle this kind of disappointment and to still not let your disappointment stop your progression."