Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has said that unlike Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson who hand-picked his successor David Moyes the 64-year-old Frenchman will have no input as to who replaces him at the Emirates when he steps down.
The Gunners boss is yet to sign a new contract with Arsenal after just celebrating his 1,000th match in charge and despite his contract expiring this summer he is expected to sign a new contract at the end of the season that will see him at the club for a further two years.
The Arsenal board of directors are all aware of the difficulty they will face when eventually replacing Wenger and will be keen not to repeat what has happened at Manchester United with Moyes trying to emulate the success of Ferguson.
“I always said, and you can check that, everybody has his job (at the club). My job is to do well for the team, not to do anything else,” Wenger told Sky Sports.
Asked if he would be choosing his successor, Wenger insisted: “No.”
“My word is my word,” said Wenger when asked if he would still be in charge next season, he added: “Yes – unless I decide otherwise.
“I have told you many times we have had no time to sit down and do it.
“(I am) not going anywhere, don’t worry for that, but I want to have a feeling coming out of the season that I have done the maximum for the club.”
The Gunners boss said he would decide whether or not the season had been a success once the final whistle has blown.
“Let’s first see when the season is over,” he said. “If you look back for one year, would you have done something different? If you say to me ‘no’, I say ‘this guy is a complete lunatic’.
“It is not only linked with the result. It is linked with the situations you have dealt with – have you done well or not?
“Do you ask me ‘have I made zero mistakes in the last year?’ I am not stupid enough to say ‘yes’.”
