Arsene Wenger Reveals One Of His Biggest Regrets In His Glittering Managerial Career At Arsenal

Legendary former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has candidly admitted that he regrets signing Sol Campbell from London rivals Tottenham.

Campbell, 46, started his senior playing career at Spurs, made over 250 appearances for the club and captained the side to the League Cup trophy in 1999.

And the former England international made a shock switch to Arsenal in 2001 and became a central defensive figure for the Gunners in their 'Invincibles' season.

However, Wenger has insisted that he was aware of the "heated debates" that the Campbell move would cause, but he believed the former Gunners star "was capable of facing the adversity."

The 71-year-old Frenchman told German magazine 11 Freunde: "I knew that it would cause heated debates in London, but I was truly convinced by the player.

"I thought he was capable of facing the adversity. For me, it was easy because every­body was conscious that I had signed a great player. But for him, it was more complicated."

Campbell, who spent five years at the Gunners, won two Premier League titles, two FA Cups, as well as back-to-back places in the PFA Team of the Year during his time with Arsenal.

Wenger opened up about his conversations with the former Tottenham star and how Campbell received significant backlash from fans off the pitch after the transfer.

"The situation was really stressful for Sol and he told me afterwards how severe it became," he explained.

"He couldn't go to certain places for dinner or walk freely in London because of the anger of the Tottenham fans.

"In hindsight, I'm not sure if I would sign him again bearing in mind the difficulties he faced."

Campbell would play for Portsmouth, Notts County and Newcastle, as well as a short second spell with Arsenal before retiring from football.

Wenger, meanwhile, stepped down as Arsenal boss in 2018 after an incredible 22 years in charge of the club.

The former Monaco manager won three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups during his time with the Gunners.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Spurs, Football News, gunners, Tottenham Hotspur, Football, Arsene Wenger, Premier League, Arsenal, tottenham

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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