Arsene Wenger has paid a touching tribute to Gerard Houllier, revealing he was in contact with the former Liverpool boss right up until his death two months ago.
Houllier passed away in mid-December at the age of 73, prompting an outpouring of tributes from across football, particularly among former Liverpool colleagues, with the Frenchman having spent almost six years in charge at Anfield.
Legendary former Arsenal boss Wenger feels the reaction from Liverpool shows how highly thought of Houllier was at the club.
Speaking to beIN Sports, Wenger also revealed he had a close friendship with Houllier himself, and was in contact the day before his compatriot died.
"I had him on the phone the day before, on the Sunday," Wenger said.
"He was in hospital, he text me at night that they'd let him back home, but unfortunately, the next day he died on the Monday morning after being in hospital for two weeks.
"He had a weakness in his vascular system that was fatal to him."
He added: "I believe, when Gerrard died, you could see he left something deep at Liverpool when you saw the response there.
"As God created, we are always living on short-term but, even still, there's memory and I'd give that credit to the country.
"It's one of the things I like in England, they remember people and they remember when people had the right attitude.
"You know how it is, people say you're loved when you're born, you're loved when you die, and, in between, you have to manage.
"And when you're a manager, you have to manage more."
