1000 GAMES
Midfielder Mathieu Flamini was in full praise of manager Arsene Wenger ahead of the Frenchman’s 1000th game in charge of the club. Wenger will be leading his team to this milestone when they take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
He is currently the longest serving manager in European football after the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson. Flamini has said that he has witnessed no change in Wenger from the days he has been playing for the Frenchman. Flamini first joined Arsenal in 2004, but he left the club after four years in 2008.
After spending the last few years at AC Milan, he recently returned to the club on a free transfer. Flamini said that the tactics and philosophies of the Frenchman has changed so little during these years that he founded very easy to return to Arsenal and perform exceptionally well. The 30-year-old has been an integral part of the Arsenal team this campaign. He has provided the necessary bite that has transformed Arsenal into a title challenging team once again. Flamini has also given his insight into the tactics of Wenger.
According to him, the Frenchman likes his teams to play the football on the ground in short passes, while also pressing the opposition high up the pitch.
"Congratulations to him first of all. It's an unbelievable achievement. 1000 games, maybe just one other manager did that so it's incredible. He means so much to the club and for the achievements he has done until now. He is someone who knows exactly what he wants. He had a vision at the beginning, he's moved to Arsenal and he still has the same one. He know exactly how he wants to play and it is still the same way. That's remarkable,” said the midfielder, who has been anchoring along with Mikel Arteta.