Guardiola wants Wenger to find new role in football

Arsene Wenger

Arsene Wenger will walk away from Arsenal at the end of the season but Pep Guardiola is keen for his expertise not to be lost to the game.

Pep Guardiola hopes Arsene Wenger remains involved in football after calling time on his 22-year spell as Arsenal manager.

Wenger confirmed he will stand down at the end of this season in a statement on Friday.

Tributes have poured in concerning the 68-year-old Frenchman’s influence upon English football and freshly crowned Premier League champions Guardiola added his voice to those plaudits.

“All my respect for what he has done,” the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss told a news conference ahead of City’s game against Swansea City on Sunday.

“The Premier League is the Premier League thanks to what he has done after he arrived – his vision, his respect for football.

“I wish him all the best. In the future hopefully he can be involved in football in a different role. These kind of people are necessary for football because of their experience. Here in the Premier League, with Arsenal, with FIFA, with UEFA – anywhere.

“Of course, it was a pleasure – when I was in Barcelona, Bayern Munich and here to compete with him.”

Guardiola will discuss future with City at the end of this season, with a year remaining on the three-year deal he penned in 2016.

Even considering that prospect of extending his stay in Manchester on the agenda, the 47-year-old feels Wenger’s 22-year tenure is something unlikely to be repeated in the modern game.

“That’s difficult,” he said. “Sir Alex Ferguson did it at Untied and what Arsene Wenger did now is so, so complicated.

“Social media and the people with their opinions are so fresh. These managers feel a lot of pressure and, with the money involved, the sporting directors do not have the same patience.

“That is the same in Spain and Italy. It will be difficult to find a person who stays 22 years in the same club.”