Anniversaries are invariably a time for reflection and when Arsène Wenger celebrates his 13th at Arsenal he could be forgiven for wallowing in satisfaction. "Arsenal is Arsenal because of him," said the defender Gaël Clichy, who is the current squad's longest-serving player.
The Frenchman has not only won three Premier League titles and four FA Cups, making him the club's most successful manager, he has also established them as a 21st-century power with their move to the Emirates Stadium. For the statisticians, Wenger now becomes Arsenal's longest-serving manager, having eclipsed George Allison (1934-47).
Wenger, however, has no time to dwell on the past. When he is forced to look back, the arch-perfectionist gives the feeling that it is predominantly the bad moments that remain seared on to his mind. He has admitted that, as a young manager, defeat would leave him physically sick and, as he approaches his 60th birthday on 22 October, he says the mental anguish of losing gets even more pronounced. Last week he commented that his team's unbeaten Premier League season of 2003-04 was "the only time I thought I did a good job".
Wenger's hunger for a first piece of silverware since the 2005 FA Cup is all-consuming and it is reflected in his players. But Wenger has essentially not changed much in his 13 years and he continues to cajole his young squad towards what would be the vindication of honours. For him, the carrot rather than the stick, or the flying boot, has to be the instrument of choice. "Throwing boots can sometimes be a good idea," he said, with a smile, "but it is not my basic strength."
"Maybe for some people," Clichy said, "it would be better to be pushing the players more and getting more angry but, overall, he has been here 13 years and you cannot say that the way he manages the team is not good because he has done incredibly well and we respect him.
"I have seen him angry but, most of the time, he waits and talks to you face-to-face. He doesn't like to talk in front of everyone and the players know that when you make a mistake, it is up to you to ask yourself the right questions and put it right. He is really professional and human. He has only one word and if he says something, most of the time it happens."
Like his great rival at Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson, Wenger is always the first in to the training ground every morning and the last to leave. He has said he does not believe in retiring and Peter Hill-Wood, the Arsenal chairman, feels that he could continue in the job "for another 10 years. He is showing no signs of slowing down."
"In the last few years, we haven't won anything and people talk badly about him," said Clichy. "But Arsenal is today one of the best clubs in Europe and a big part of that is because of the boss. We have to support him, the players want to play for him and win something for him and so I think it is going to be a great season. The only thing he says is 'Play the way we play'. He gives a lot of confidence to the players. We are the players we are today because of him."
Stan Kroenke, the club's largest shareholder, has increased his stake to 28.7%, after buying a further 80 shares for £680,000. If the American businessman were to reach 29.9%, it would trigger a formal takeover offer for the remainder of the club. Kroenke has more than doubled his stake over the past year.
