In the wake of comments made by Louis van Gaal about a winter break, Arsene Wenger said he relishes the festive period and would cry if plans were introduced to remove it.
It isn’t the first time since taking over at Old Trafford that the Manchester United manager has bemoaned the tradition of playing through Christmas, and his recent remark that it is “the most evil thing about this culture” has sparked further debate.
Despite the Arsenal boss admitting he felt similarly when he arrived in England, Wenger now understands why there isn’t a break and said he would hate to see it change.
I had [Van Gaal’s] ideas when I arrived here but today I would cry if you changed that because it’s part of English tradition and English football.
To suppress the game on Boxing Day… The whole of Europe comes to England to watch the game.
This season, Boxing day fixtures will be played on a Saturday with another game two days later on the Monday.
With only a days rest, Wenger would still continue with the current format but would like to see a break after.
It’s a very important part of us being popular in the world, that nobody works at Christmas and everybody watches the Premier League.
I want to go on with it, yes. I always pleaded for a break after January 1, but we have to keep this tradition alive.
