Legends
Arsene Wenger's Monaco Memories: Weah, Henry and more!
You were at the beginning of this professionalization of high-level football, especially at AS Monaco. What do you remember from your years at the Club?
The advantage of looking back is that we forget the bad memories, we only keep the good ones (smiles)! I want to remember that everyone has always been happy to be at AS Monaco, that there is a family spirit, a feeling of pride also to be part of the Club and to represent the Principality.
I would say that we were even somewhat in the shoes of a national team, especially since at the time there were only two foreign players in the squad. French players have always been attracted to Monaco. I also remember a desire for a sense of class in our behavior and a desire to play quality football, resolutely focused on offensive play.
A strategy that paid off, since you were crowned champions in your first season on the bench…
Yes of course, there was that title in 1988, but also two Coupe de France finals, one lost and the other won in 1991, as well as a Cup Winners’ Cup final and a Champions League semi-final. We had a European run every year, and when I arrived, AS Monaco had never made it past the first round in a European competition. Now it’s a different story, and I hope that this season the team will go far in this Champions League.
You personally gave debuts to Emmanuel Petit, Lilian Thuram and Thierry Henry. Do you feel like you helped the beginnings of what we saw in France 98?
Yes, a little! In the sense that we are proud to have trained them here in Monaco. Especially since for a player like Lilian Thuram, it was not easy, because he came here as a midfielder and ended up making a career as a defender, while Emmanuel Petit became very famous by playing in the heart of midfield.
As a result, a change of position can often be a trigger in a career, if you play in the position that suits you best. Fabinho, this is great example, who developed into a great midfielder after starting as a fullback.
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