• Premier League

Half the squad wanted to leave, Wenger admits

ESPNsoccernet staff
October 18, 2011
Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal have come through their hardest moment © Getty Images
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Arsene Wenger has revealed the extent of his nightmare summer with at Arsenal, claiming that "half the dressing room wanted to leave" the club and stating his belief that the crisis is to blame for their poor start to the season.

Wenger has endured a year to forget at Emirates Stadium, with his annus horribilis including a capitulation at the end of the 2010-11 season - with a Carling Cup final defeat to Birmingham the lowlight - and an 8-2 defeat to Manchester United in August representing his worst ever defeat as Arsenal boss.

The Gunners edged back in to the top half of the Premier League with a 2-1 victory over Sunderland on Sunday, but Wenger's side are already 12 points off the pace at the top of the table and face a fight to reach the top four.

The departures of star duo Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas, as well as Gael Clichy, were a major blow to the Frenchman over the summer but the 61-year-old, who has been in the Emirates hotseat since 1996, has revealed that he had to deal with more than just the aforementioned trio wanting to leave the club, in what he describes as an "extraordinarily difficult" period ahead of this season.

Wenger believes other clubs would have crumbled in the same circumstances, but Arsenal were able survive because the club is "extremely solid and united".

"It was a very difficult summer because half the dressing room wanted to leave,'' Wenger told French radio station RTL. "You're preparing for a season where you don't know who's going to come in, the players who are staying are asking themselves what's going on at the club, you've got a pre-season tour of Asia.

"It was extraordinarily difficult. What saved us is that we're a club that are extremely solid and united. Other clubs would surely have gone to pieces in those circumstances.

"What people forget is that we lost three key players because we've also lost [Jack] Wilshere. Three who were important in our midfield. Nasri, Fabregas and Wilshere have all been lost and they were the basis of our midfield last season.

"We've had to reconstruct our midfield entirely because Wilshere won't be back until January. Still, we've disappointed this season so far, given what's expected of us, but I think we're on the up again. The problem is you can only climb the table slowly. We're not too far away in terms of points from fourth place. We're too far away from the top two.''

Wenger admitted that simple economics meant that players wanted to leave Arsenal because there was more money on offer elsewhere.

"It's not that [players have to leave to win titles],'' he said. "The problem isn't that. Frankly, if you compare what Manchester City have won in the past and what Arsenal have won, then you don't go to Manchester City to win titles. Players go to Manchester City because they pay much better than Arsenal.

"They are a force clearly, because they have exceptional financial clout, so it's not surprising what they've done.''

Now the Frenchman is facing questions over the long-term future of Fabregas' replacement as captain, Robin van Persie, who insists he is committed to the club but is yet to agree a new deal with 18 months left on his existing contract.

"For me being professional means that right up until the last day you are at a club you give 100% to that club,'' Wenger said. "I'm not asking myself whether Van Persie is going to extend his contract in 18 months' time. For me what is important is that he plays well for us on Wednesday. After that the next match. That's how I think.

"He's scored 28 goals in 34 games, so they're exceptional statistics. He's got a contract for another 18 months and he's a man who is attached to our club. I'm not especially thinking about losing him.''

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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