Arsene Wenger warns Chelsea and Tottenham against temporary stadium moves

Home comfort: Wenger has warned his rivals about a potential move to Wembley
David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Sam Long11 November 2015

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has warned Chelsea and Tottenham about the drawbacks of temporary stadium moves.

The Gunners are one of few clubs to have successfully moved grounds in recent years after they relocated to Emirates Stadium in 2006 and played a portion of the fixtures at the national stadium during the process.

The Blues and Spurs are both considering a similar route as Stamford Bridge and White Hart Lane are redeveloped to boost their respective capacities over the next couple of years.

Wembley is an option for both clubs but Milton Keynes and Twickneham are also potential destinations.

Tottenham are set to spend the 2017-18 campaign away from home turf while Chelsea could have to leave their west London base for two seasons if their £500m plans come to fruition.

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

But Wenger has warned his Premier League rivals that playing fixtures away from a clubs' traditional home can prove to be a disadvantage to not only the players but also the fans.

"When you move into a new stadium, you have to feel at home.

"You have to feel that it is the right place for you. That is only created by the history that you build slowly through the games.

"I still think it's a little bit of a disadvantage, even for the fans, they do not feel completely at home, and that can transmit to the players.

"That was a big problem for us," he admitted.

The French coach also conceded that Arsenal's decision to stage games at Wembley was an error as his team struggled to adjust to their new surroundings.

Tottenham's new stadium - In Pictures

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"Looking back today, I say it was a handicap for us.

"In hindsight it was maybe a mistake to move to Wembley, but we had no real choice as Uefa did not accept us holding the games at Highbury.

"The players were comfortable at Highbury and the teams that visited us weren't comfortable. Suddenly it was like we were playing games on a neutral ground, basically."

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