By a m a r pat e l | p h oto g r a p h y By s a m B a r k e r

IT’s May 2008 and arsenal FC, one oF the most prestigious and successful clubs in the history of english football, is destined to finish a campaign without silverware for a third straight season. Many devout fans of the club – those who so vociferously proclaimed ‘in arsène we trust’ in previous years – have begun to question the wisdom of their manager’s youth-over-experience policy. Could ‘the miracle worker’, as former vice-chairman david dein once proclaimed him, have lost his touch?

The roman poet Horace once wrote: ‘adversity reveals genius, prosperity conceals it.’ speaking with arsène Wenger about his life you soon begin to believe that his values, attitude and intellect can weather any storm. even perched on the edge of an armchair in his office in arsenal’s training complex in Colney, Hertfordshire, he exudes intelligence and calm. always measured, cerebral and studious, he instructs me much as he would a young talent: ‘I try to take pressure in a positive way. It pushes me to excellence. Pressure has helped me to be rigorous, to push myself as far as I can go. To resist disappointments and to insist on your own way of playing, requires you to remain passionate and truly believe that what you are doing is right.’

To know the man, you have to know the upbringing of this 58-year-old alsace native. Indeed, it was the ceaseless football chatter and daily drunken antics witnessed in his parents’ duttlenheim pub restaurant, la Croix d’or – also the headquarters of the village team in which Wenger first played – that implanted a permanent passion for football in his brain, triggered his dislike for alcohol (Wenger is teetotal) and prompted his strict advocacy of health and fitness. ‘I grew up in that pub with the idea that football is the most important thing in life,’ he says. ‘you see, the problem with being a sportsman is that you must rely on your body. you need that body to be as perfect as possible. soon, you start to think about how you practise, the way you eat and how much you sleep.’

The young arsène Wenger was a fairly unremarkable player (although a promising strategist and leader) who, after about 10 years on various local teams, ended up at racing Club de strasbourg in 1978, where he was groomed as a coach by his mentor Max Hild. did his playing days help him to become a better manager? ‘It can be

Despite his calm Demeanour anD consiDeraBle success, arsenal footBall cluB manager arsene Wenger remains a complex figure, infatuateD By ‘the Beautiful game’ anD uncompromising in his Beliefs

LEXUS magaZine 39

‘Pressure has helPed me to be rigorous, to Push myself as far as i can go’

Winning the minD game

advantageous for a good manager to have been a good player,’ he admits. ‘you know what is required at the top level and you get an earlier chance – but it’s not enough. This is a job that requires passion, physical and psychological stamina, a desire to help others, complete and total dedication and [a readiness to] sacrifice your life.’

Wenger worked at strasbourg and as Cannes before as nancy-lorraine offered him his big chance in the manager’s seat. With player diets becoming increasingly important to him, he not only lectured his team on eating correctly, but also invited their wives to the training ground to learn how to cook for an athlete. He impressed enough at nancy to be offered the job as coach of as Monaco FC in 1987. Within a year Monaco had scooped the French championship, with Wenger collecting the Manager of the year award.

Wenger was developing a reputation as a manager worth playing for, attracting high-calibre players such as future French World Cup winner youri djorkaeff, future FIFa World Player of the year George Weah and future england manager Glenn Hoddle. But despite this success, Wenger is quick to question his maturity at the time, admitting that anger and impatience were his two worst demons. It was in his next role as manager of Japanese team nagoya Grampus eight that he achieved much-needed balance. during an 18-month stint at the club where he took it from the bottom three to runners-up position in the J-league while capturing both the super Cup and the emperor’s Cup, it was his philosophical cache that grew most. ‘When I go somewhere I try to understand the culture,’ he begins, edging forward on his seat. ‘Japan changed my life as I was a long way from home. suddenly you have to take everything into perspective: family, friends, all are so distant. you’re on your own. There’s no escape from your problems. That period taught me about control and helped me to realise what is important.

‘The fascinating thing about Japan is the mixture of traditionalist attitude and modern way of life. also, it’s interesting how Japanese society can cultivate respect at that very high level and still perform. That’s not the impression I get in europe. you feel that to be successful you need to be disrespectful. a lot of values have been replaced by moneymaking and the need to be successful at any cost, particularly through the media. That’s the idea that appeals to youngsters today.

‘another thing about asian culture is they don’t show their emotions – quite the opposite of the Mediterranean. you can destroy your life or someone else’s in a second if you explode, so in Japan I learned much about mastering control.’

Wenger even wrote a book called Shosha No Esprit for the Japanese market. In it

lighting the way: arsène Wenger stands defiant inside arsenal fc’s high-tech indoor training and fitness centre

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left to right: a young Wenger watches over his players at nagoya grampus eight in

Japan; clutching the premier league trophy while on a

parade through the streets of london’s islington in 2004

he writes: ‘as a manager, it is often necessary to suppress your own personal feelings. The feelings of the team must take priority. I have become accustomed to not showing my personal feelings.’

Japan was also the beginning of his admiration for lexus (Wenger drives an ls 600h). ‘I discovered lexus when Grampus eight gave me a model and I instantly fell in love with it. When I came to arsenal the club gave me a different brand but I wanted to go back to lexus as I have a bad conscience and wanted to drive a hybrid model. [That way] I could mix two targets – be more ecologically responsible and get the make of car I love.’

In the time I spent with Wenger, it was fairly easy to identify the elements to his character – more fascinating, though, are the contradictions. For instance, he is an economics graduate who has been ‘trained to rationally analyse any problem’, and to employ statistics, which are ‘an integral part of the game’. on the other hand, he is a passionate man with latin roots who can get rather irate judging by previous spats with fellow managers such as sir alex Ferguson and alan Pardew. How does he reconcile passion with rationality? do they clash? ‘yes they clash,’ he admits. ‘Most of the time rationality takes control but sometimes you explode and the damage can be irreversible. However, with experience you learn to think of the consequences of your actions, anticipate problems and avoid difficulties.’

so to Wenger’s english chapter. a ‘geography teacher’ was the first impression of him in the mind of lee dixon, TV pundit and former arsenal defender. newspapers and players were dumbfounded when he was appointed manager in 1996: ‘arsène who?’. yet fast forward 12 years and it’s

clear that Wenger’s attention to detail and conditioning has been chiefly responsible for arsenal playing some of the most breathtaking football in the Premier league, winning three Premier league titles, four Fa Cups and four Charity/Community shields. according to former strasbourg coach Hild, success in england was never in doubt given Wenger’s roots. ‘[People forget that] it is arsène’s German heritage that has proved more valuable to him than his French birth certificate,’ he argues. ‘alsace used to be part of Germany and arsène has the rigour, discipline and sense of order for which Germans are known.’

Wenger’s shrewd eye for talent has seen the likes of Thierry Henry, Patrick Viera, Cesc Fabregas and Theo Walcott pull on arsenal’s red and white jersey. Meanwhile, the training facilities at Colney are state-of-the art due in no small part to Wenger’s guidance. For example, the £430 million arsenal emirates stadium at ashburton Grove incorporates a horseshoe-shaped dressing room, at Wenger’s request, because corners promote negativity according to the Feng shui he learnt in Japan. Many would argue that Wenger’s instant success and thinking opened the door to the many foreign managers who patrol the touchlines of Premier league games week in, week out.

But how does he react to a season plagued by doubt over his dogged pursuit of flamboyant football, at the expense of instilling a steely resolve and buying experienced players? ‘When we built a new stadium I went for a new team,’ he says. ‘Compared to last season they’ve moved forward. despite losing the Champions league and being out of the Championship we have done reasonably well – beyond

expectation. Maybe under pressure not quite so well but that’s part of the learning process for a very young team. To destroy this progress would be stupid. We must continue with the same values, the same vision of the game and develop the same team. Then next year… we can win everything.’

so have Wenger’s priorities changed over the course of his time in england and do they extend beyond football? ‘Values are predominantly important to me,’ he replies. ‘What is most interesting are the values that sport brings to people. I believe that you have a responsibility, when your sport is so popular, to show that benefit and what it means to you.

‘sport can unite the world and confront it. sport can show how the society of tomorrow could be. In my team I now have 14 different nationalities that play together week in, week out and they’re playing outstanding football. The world of tomorrow could be that. open and working together.’

and what else does the arsenal football manager like to do when away from the pitch? In a word, sacrifice. ‘I never go out. I stay at home and I prepare like a sportsman,’ he insists, ‘thinking day and night about the game. I eat dinner and watch football every evening to try to keep in touch with the game. Very soon it becomes a way of life. as rigid as a priest’s. a vocation. a dedication. annie, my wife, gets used to it. If you’re a passionate person, you don’t suffer – but the people around you do!’

after a moment to ponder, he mentions listening to Brahms or Mozart, liking singers old (Jacques Brel) and new (avant-gardist Camille), occasionally going out to dinner with friends, and reading about english culture – but more likely scientific, political or sports research papers and social analyses of society… He refocuses. Wenger obviously doesn’t like to switch off.

‘sometimes I think that I have spent my whole life trying to win football games. Is that reasonable? you’ve only one life, after all. But if you condense things right down, you try to win football games because that is what matters to you. and when you have won one, you try to win another one. and that’s my life.

IN THE COMMUNITYWith arsène Wenger at the helm, arsenal fc regularly recognises its social responsibility as a major benefactor and influence upon youth by nominating ‘charities of the season’ to support. previously, more than £200,000 was raised for the Willow foundation, which helps seriously ill young adults. this year’s charity is treehouse, established in 1997 to increase the quantity and quality of autism education provision across the country. ‘i visited the treehouse centre and was deeply fascinated by the huge need for special educators and impressed by the dedication of the people who care for these children,’ says Wenger. ‘We live in a privileged world of football but i think 95 per cent of players are here not because of the financial rewards but because they love the game. if we can give something back, then that is our responsibility.’

‘if we continue with the same values, the same vision, then we can win everything’

ArsENE wENgEr’s CArEEr TO dATE

1949: Born in strasbourg to parents alphonse and louise.1969: Begins amateur playing career as sweeper/defender with as mutzig, a third Division club.1978: Joins rc strasbourg but plays only three times in its 1978-79 winning season. 1983: Becomes assistant coach of as cannes. 1987: as monaco win the ligue 1 title in Wenger’s first season as coach. he turns down the chance to coach the french national team. 1989: steers as monaco to french cup triumph.

1994: fired after monaco finished ninth in the league. 1995: takes just one season at Japan’s club nagoya grampus eight to lift club out of the bottom three to runners-up. then leads them to J-league super cup and emperor’s cup honours. 1996: arsenal manager Bruce rioch is sacked five days before the season starts and the club announces Wenger will replace him. 1998: arsenal win premier league and fa cup double.1999: signs french winger thierry henry from Juventus

in a £10.5 million deal. henry converted into one of the world’s best strikers.2000: arsenal lose on penalties to galatasaray in the uefa cup final.2000: given a 12-match touchline ban and fined four weeks’ wages after being found guilty of ‘threatening behaviour and physical intimidation’ towards an official in a match at sunderland. Wenger appeals and the ban is eventually overturned.2002: arsenal secure a second premier league

and fa cup double under Wenger. he is awarded france’s highest civil decoration, the légion d’honneur.2003: arsenal beat southampton 1-0 to win the fa cup. Wenger is awarded an oBe in the Queen’s Birthday honours list for ‘services to British football’.2004: arsenal win the premier league title after going through the 38-match season unbeaten. awarded the freedom of islington.2006: arsenal reaches the uefa champions

league final. Wenger is inducted into the english football hall of fame in recognition of his achievements as a manager in the english game, only the second foreign manager in history to be so honoured. he officially opens the new £430 million arsenal emirates stadium.2007: signs a new three-year contract extension, keeping him at arsenal until June 2011. a bronze bust of the manager is presented to him at the arsenal agm by the board of directors.

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