Arsene Wenger held talks with Real Madrid while he was still Arsenal boss, says ex PSG president
Wenger was a long-term target of the Spanish giants who went through 18 managers during the Frenchman's 22-year reign in North London
ARSENE WENGER met Real Madrid to discuss moving to the Bernabeu, while he was in charge at Arsenal.
The incredible story has been revealed by Wenger’s friend and former Paris Saint-Germain president Charles Villeneuve.
During his 22-year tenure at Arsenal, Wenger was a long-term target for the current European champions who finally got a face-to-face meeting with the Frenchman in an Italian gym.
As they tried to lure him to Spain, Villeneuve was in attendance.
He told : “Two clubs have always wanted him as a coach, and I attended a gym in Italy at the Real Madrid negotiations with him. But he decided to stay at Arsenal."
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Wenger left Arsenal in May after winning three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups.
And despite some periods of underachievement as far as some Arsenal fans were concerned, he remained loyal to the club who gave him the chance to work in England in 1996.
It was a different story at the Bernabeu as they went through 18 managers while Wenger was working in the English top flight.
Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Rafael Benitez, Manuel Pellegrini and Fabio Capello twice came and went while the experienced Frenchman was the boss at Arsenal.
Wenger is taking a break from football and insists he will back in 2019.
He has been linked with roles at PSG and AC Milan with recent reports he could end up back at Monaco, the club he managed for seven years where Thierry Henry is struggling to make an impact.
Henry only joined Monaco last month but has not seen his new side win a single game.