Arsene Wenger has come under intense fire from a large section of Arsenal supporters in recent weeks due to the club’s underwhelming performances on the field.
The Gunners look like they’ll finish in sixth place at best in the Premier League, and having already been knocked out of the FA Cup, their only remaining hope of ending the season with silverware comes from the Europa League.
Speaking to Sky Sports ahead of Arsenal’s game with Watford this weekend, Wenger revealed that he had not been sleeping well due to the poor performances of his side, before admitting that his once fierce rival Sir Alex Ferguson is one of the men who have sent him a message of support.
He said:
Every manager will tell you when he doesn’t get results that the first thing affected is the mood, the lack of sleep [because of] that desire to find solutions,” he said. Overall, it is part of the job. When you are a young manager you dream that you want to win every football game. But it is not about that. It is about surviving through disappointments and finding solutions. That is interesting as well and can make you a better manager. I got many messages from people who are supportive and I must stay I am very grateful for that. We all go through tough times but, when you take a little bit of perspective, we got to a cup final and played against the best team in the country. Current and past [managers have been in touch]. I have a good relationship with Ferguson at the moment, sometimes he sends me a message, yes, when things don’t go well. We all know we are on the same boat. I can understand every manager has his own problems and has to face his own daily situation. There is a solidarity there and I support the other managers always, we all do that. I made 820 Premier League games, 200 European club games but there is no possibility not to suffer. You have to suffer.
Arsenal’s main priority this season is to win the Europa League, thus ensuring that they are in the Champions League next season, but they’ll still want to improve their poor league form as it is not out of the realms of possibility that Burnley could leapfrog them into sixth place.
