A living legend at Arsenal, where he coached from 1996 to 2018 – a longevity record unequaled across the Channel – Arsène Wenger left his mark on the history of the London club. At the head of the Gunners, the former French coach won eleven trophies, including three Premier League (1998, 2002 and 2004). Enough to have a statue of him in front of the Emirates Stadium.
During his 22 years on the Arsenal bench, Arsène Wenger notably brought in Marouane Chamakh in 2010. And the ex-striker does not only have good memories of his relationship with the man who now occupies the position of director of world football development at FIFA.
After a good first season in the English capital, Chamakh gradually disappeared from Arsène Wenger's books. Barred by competition from Robin van Persie, the Moroccan even made a few appearances within the reserve team during the 2011-2012 financial year. Which seriously deteriorated his relationship with the former French coach, now 75 years old.
Chamakh on Wenger: “We entered into a dialogue of the deaf”
“There was no more communication. Generally speaking, I'm not here to make friends with the coach. It was his wife who really liked me outside, I remember that. What I asked was to play a little more, I wasn't asking him to change tactics. We entered into a dialogue of the deaf. I was patient, but with the best player in the Premier League next door (Robin van Persie, editor's note), I didn't have the arguments », admitted Marouane Chamakh during an interview with
SoFoot.
And to add: “ It still ended on a good note. At the time Crystal Palace wanted me, I did everything to go there because I really wanted to stay in London. But it was complicated with the Arsenal sporting director and when I called Arsène, he resolved the situation in five minutes. He wanted to please me, he understood that this was what he owed me. »
Despite a difficult relationship with Wenger, Chamakh does not hold grudges. “ He was a great coach, a scholar, nevertheless believes the former Bordeaux player. We trained on a special pitch on Friday: the same pitch as at the Emirates, with the same distances, down to the last detail. He neglects nothing. With Arsène, you learn a lot about tactics. » After Arsenal, the native of Tonneins was loaned for six months to West Ham, before joining Crystal Palace and Cardiff City.
