5. His Reputation Is At Stake
When Le Professeur joined Arsenal he brought a vision of attacking football to a club known for its great defensive but unspectacular forward play. The fans, the players and the media rightly praised him for his attacking mentality and he was rewarded with trophies, plaudits and a contract making him one of the highest paid managers in world sport. Arsene Wenger was a trailblazer and a trend setter: his template for a winning team was adopted by other teams in the Premier League who wanted to compete for the title. He changed the way all football clubs dealt with nutrition and training, he was one of the first coaches to realise the importance of, and concentrate on, the psychology of their players. One cannot underestimate the impact he had on the Premier League. Now it's 2013 and Arsenal are approaching eight years without a trophy and the knives are out: football pundits are questioning his tactics, his team selections, his transfers and even his ambition. If Arsene can deliver a trophy this season then he can shut his critics up and the Arsenal fans wont have to worry about an ignominious end to the greatest manager they have ever had when he eventually waves goodbye.