Arsene Wenger reveals big sacrifice he made so Arsenal could build the Emirates | OneFootball

Arsene Wenger’s time at Arsenal was not always straightforward, but it was certainly successful.

He was synonymous with the Gunners after spending more than 20 years in north London, and the former boss has now revealed that he made a big career sacrifice to ensure that the Emirates stadium was built.

The club departed their former home, Highbury, in 2006, leaving behind an iconic venue that had seen Arsenal become one of the most successful teams in the Premier League era.

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Relocating meant that a further 20,000 fans could get through the doors for home games, and the new ground remains one of the biggest in the league.

Wenger reveals the commitment he made to help secure funding for the Emirates

But before the club secured funding to build their new home, banks and the club wanted something from the boss.

Speaking on beIN Sports, Wenger said that he encouraged the club to take what he believed was an important step.

“I encouraged the club to do it,” he said. “It cost £200 million more than we expected it to be.

“We were blocked, we could only spend 50% of the turnover on wages. For example, if the turnover was £500 million we could only dedicate £250 million to wages.

“So we always had to sell our best players because the best players want money.”

A move to a new, vastly bigger ground allowed the club to maximise turnover, but Arsenal needed Wenger to make a big sacrifice to secure the funding for construction.

“They wanted me to sign at the start of that period for five years,” the Frenchman revealed.

“I felt always that there was something special at Arsenal that I was proud to represent and to defend.

“On the other hand, loyalty is very important, and you cannot ask for the players to be loyal if you jump out at the first offer that you get.”

The banks demanded stability, and Wenger offered them and the club that way beyond the five years he talks about.

And even though offers came through the door for his services, the manager was more than happy to keep his side of the deal despite criticism mounting at times.

“I accepted it because I was working for something that was bigger than me and I had to do well,” he said.

“Despite that, we stayed in the top four for 20 years. And you look at the clubs who do it in England and there’s none.

“What was funny was we kept percentage wise the same number of wins, but we could not win the big games anymore, the games that mattered.”

Even though it was a big commitment to make, Wenger believed it was a necessary sacrifice on his part, especially because it got more fans through the door to watch their team.

What an incredible servant he was. Watch the full interview below.

While success has not arrived at the Emirates as frequently as at Highbury, the future certainly looks bright for the Gunners.

They could still potentially lift the league title this year, although Man City hold a significant advantage over Mikel Arteta’s side at the moment.

But with some of the league’s most promising players on their books, the likes of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, and William Saliba to name but a few, you would think an excellent period for the club is just around the corner.