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Football London
Football London
Sport
James Benge

Arsene Wenger provides big update on his managerial future 12 months after leaving Arsenal

Arsene Wenger admits he does not know if he will ever return to management a year after he left Arsenal.

Wenger has not been short of offers since he and the Gunners parted ways at the end of the 2017/18 season, with Fulham twice having attempted to appoint him as their head coach. And although the 69-year-old has hinted on occasions that he is ready to step back into the dugout every opportunity that has come his way has been swiftly rejected.

For now Wenger's focus is elsewhere with the announcement that the former Arsenal boss has joined football-tech company PlayerMaker as an investor and operating partner.

The Frenchman is also working as a pundit for beIN Sports and has been involved in numerous charity initiatives over the past 12 months, a period which he says has been sufficiently enjoyable that he is no longer sure whether he wants to manage again.

"I don't know. I will go back into football for sure," he said when asked if he could envisage a return to management.

"In what position I don’t know, whether that is as a manager or not. The appetite, the desire, is still there. I know what kind of life I have in front of me so I have to decide that now.

"I thought, do I go straight back into that heat again? It is not so much the heat but once you go in there, there is nothing else.

"So I thought let’s take a bit of time. Ok, two months, three months. Now I have a problem to get in again!"

He added: "Originally I said I will manage straight away again, then I thought maybe I take a little distance.

"I came to the conclusion that I want to share what I learned in my life. Because life is only useful if at some stage you share what you know.

"In what way will it be, will it be just winning football games or in another way, that's what I have to decide. That decision will come very quickly.

"One way of sharing what I've learned is with Playermaker but it's also with conferences, with charities. It's a different way of life, but football is still my passion. I don't understand a lot but I feel I know a little bit about the game."

A project that is sure to occupy Wenger over the months and years to come is the autobiography he has long promised would be a priority once his managerial career comes to an end.

Arsene Wenger holds up his gift of a gold replica of the 2003/04 Premier League trophy awarded for going unbeaten for a full league season at the Emirates in May 2018 as he prepared to step down as manager. (IAN KINGTON/AFP/Getty Images)

"I will [write it]… I have many solicitations.

"I come slowly to the conclusion that at some stage I have to do it. Just to share a little bit and give an aspect of how I experienced my life at the other side."

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