Arsene Wenger has insisted he
never considered walking away
from the biggest crisis of his 16-
year reign as Arsenal manager,
but he has refused to be drawn
on any speculation that he will
remain in charge at the club
beyond the end of his current
contract in 2014.
- Wenger backed by Gunners
board
Wenger's agitated and angry
exchanges with journalists ahead
of the Champions League clash
with Bayern Munich on Tuesday
night led many to conclude the
veteran boss was cracking under
the pressure of another season of
indifferent results, but he has
moved to insist he has no
intention of leaving Arsenal any
time soon.
After their FA Cup defeat against
Blackburn was quickly followed by
a thumping defeat against Bayern
to ensure this has been the most
traumatic week of his historic
reign as Arsenal boss, Wenger
admits he has been rocked by
setbacks he was not expecting
and yet quitting is not an option
he has considered.
When asked whether there had
been a moment of the last week
when he considered resigning as
Arsenal boss, Wenger was
unequivocal in his response.
"Never, not for one second," he
stressed. "The love for the game
and the love to win (keeps me
motivated).
"I will not come out with my
feelings (on negative publicity of
the last week). What is important
for me is to focus on the next
game and try to give my best, like
all the players.
"My spark has nothing to do with
the length of your life. It is just
how you are. You are motivated
by how much you want to win
and how much you want to be a
winner. If I go out against you
now in a one-on-one, you will see
that I will beat you. At least if I
don't, I will want to beat you. That
will be the same so long as I can
move."
It was when the questions turned
to his future that Wenger gave the
biggest hint yet that he may not
remain at Arsenal for too much
longer, as he insisted he was
working to a short term plan and
would not consider extending his
stay beyond next year for now.
"I have a contract until 2014 and
at the moment I am on a short
term plan," he stated. "For two
reasons. One I have been here for
a long time and two, I have to
consider what I want to do. That
will be considered in 2014."
Wenger went on to comment on
the events at the board meeting
he attended along with Arsenal
majority shareholder Stan Kroenke
on Thursday, as he insisted there
was not change of mood with
regards to his future at the club.
"The board meeting speaks about
many things, it is about
commercial, ticket prices, long
term plans," he said. "I make my
report as well on the technical
side so it was the usual thing. Of
course we had no euphoria
because we have gone through a
disappointment on Tuesday night,
but apart from that we are
responsible people who know
what it is to fight."
With smiles and laughter replacing
the tension that filled the media
room at Arsenal's London Colney
training base last Monday, Wenger
proceeded to calmly pick his way
through a host of questions that
would have been greeted with a
very different reaction just a few
days ago, yet he insists his anger
over a misleading story in The Sun
newspaper on Monday has
dispersed.
"I have calmed down," he said
with a chuckle. "Whether the
(problems) we have are
exaggerated is hard to say. There
is emotion and it is down to
people who have responsibility to
put that into perspective, keep
solid and guide the club in the
right way. My responsibility is to
keep the guideline and to guide
the team and the club."