‘Nobody is bigger than Arsenal…Arsene Wenger has some serious thinking to do’ – club heroes question manager’s future

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Richard Parry5 February 2017

Former Arsenal stars Ian Wright and Ray Parlour admit that Arsene Wenger’s time as manager could be running out.

Wenger’s side now sit in third place in the table, and three points behind their north London rivals Tottenham.

And it could have been worse for Arsenal. A point for Liverpool in their clash with Hull City would have seen the Gunners drop out of the top four completely, but Jurgen Klopp’s side succumbed to 2-0 defeat at the KC Stadium.

Fans were seen holding banners inside Stamford Bridge that read ‘Enough is enough, time to go’ as Arsenal’s title hope disintegrate, and Parlour - who won three league titles and three FA Cup under Wenger – admitted that nobody is bigger than the club when he was asked for his thoughts on the manager’s future.

Wenger sat in the stands during Arsenal's Premier League defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge Photo: Steven Paston/PA Wire
Steven Paston/PA Wire

“You’re always going to have some fans who want a change and look, Arsenal football club is a huge club, and nobody is ever bigger than the club and Wenger’s been a fantastic manager but you’ve got to get the right man into place,” he told Talksport.

“If the right man’s out there, then yeah [go for them], but that’s the problem you have. The top managers are all taken and all have very good jobs at this minute.

“David Dein was always the man [with the knowledge] at Arsenal but he’s no longer there. He was the instigator getting Wenger into the club – and that’s a big question for upstairs – who’s the man to bring in a new manager? Because you have to look at the options out there.

“The defending wasn’t good enough [against Chelsea] and that’s them out of title race, and now they’ve got to worry about making the top four.”

Wenger’s contact is due to expire this summer, and speaking on the BBC’s Match of the Day programme, former striker Wright questioned whether his former boss still has the appetite to continue with the Gunners having arrived in 1996.

"Does he still have the stomach to do this again?" asked Wright, who won the title under Wenger in 1997-98. “It is a tough couple of months for Wenger, and Arsenal are doing what they do when they slip up.

"Arsenal are in the top four, but they aren't winning the league.

"Wenger has some really serious thinking to do at the end of the season."

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