ARSENAL MANAGER ARSENE Wenger has said he is ‘convinced’ that a Premier League club will soon be managed by a woman, and maintains there are major changes on the horizon for football management.
Speaking at an FWA Live event to raise money for the London Fire Relief Fund set up in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower disaster, Wenger was asked about the prospect of a woman taking the reins at either Arsenal or a fellow Premier League team and suggested it’s a possibility for the not-too-distant future.
“Corinne Diacre, a French manager, manages in the second league for now three years, and she does extremely well. So, I’m personally convinced that will happen soon.”
Diacre, a former France international, has been assistant manager of the French women’s national team since 2007, and currently manages the Clermont Foot men’s team in Ligue 2.
Clermont had originally hired another woman, Portuguese Helena Costa, but Costa quit the role after a month in charge citing “total amateurism” and a “lack of respect” from the the club following the signings of players that were made without her consent.
Wenger went on to claim that the role of manager will be revolutionised in the coming years, suggesting the LMA do a prospective study on the future of the position.
“I’m convinced in 10 or 15 years it will not necessarily be a football specialist who is a manager of a club,” he said.
“You will have so many scientists around the team that who will bring out the team to play on Saturday will be more management specialists than football specialists.
“Because the football decisions will be made by technological analysis.”
The Premier League’s longest-serving manager also touched upon his indecision regarding extending his Arsenal contract last season, suggesting it created an unease amongst his players.
The 67-year-old also seemed to indicate that he delayed his decision in light of Arsenal’s poor mid-season results.
“At some stage, the players came to see me and said, ‘What’s going on boss?’
I created, with me not deciding, a lack of clarity in the dressing room and there’s nothing worse than that in the dressing room.
“At some stage, I had to tell them, ‘Look guys, I’m with you, but we have to win games.’”
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