Ex Arsenal stars Ray Parlour and Martin Keown believe that a statue outside of the Emirates Stadium should be given to Arsène Wenger.
Wenger has managed the Gunners for 22 years and is the club’s longest-serving and most productive head coach in history. The Frenchman guided Arsenal to three crowns in the Premier League and seven trophies in the FA Cup, before taking over the club from 1996 to 2018.
Now, two of Wenger’s former charges think the president deserves a statue outside the ground, arguing that it would not have worked if it wasn’t available to him.
“We ended 10th, 4th, 12th, 5th in the Premier League before him, and then we captured three titles with him,” Keown told the Daily Mail. “That’s why he deserves a statue.” Parlour reasoned.
The two players agree that Wenger, who hasn’t taken any other management job since leaving the team, should also be offered a board room role:
“Wenger was a leader and he was supposed to be in the boardroom,” Keown said.
“Wenger liked the everyday routine; the training; matches,” Parlour replied.
“So what is the alternative?” said Keown.
Parlour contends, “The alternative is what he has now — no official connection to Arsenal Football Club when he could be sitting comfortably in the boardroom. He’s always saying ‘us’ and ‘we’ when I hear him speak. Get Wenger on board to bring his skills to use.”
