Arsenal legend Ray Parlour insists his former manager Arsene Wenger "outstayed his time" as Gunners boss by one season.
Wenger ended his 22-year tenure with north London club at the end of the 2017/18 season, bowing out with three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups to his name.
The Frenchman's final campaign in the Emirates hot seat saw Arsenal finish sixth in the Premier League and fail to win major silverware.
Meanwhile, some fans were growing increasingly hostile to the club's apparent lack of spending and direction.
As such, Parlour believes Wenger would have been better off leaving Arsenal one season earlier, after the Gunners beat London rivals Chelsea 2-1 to clinch the FA Cup.
“It was probably the hardest decision the board had to make in their lives because of what he did for the club, and suddenly to sack him, but they had to make a decision there," Parlour told talkSPORT .
“You look around the stadium when he came to his last year, there was no one there.
“The stadium was empty as fans said, ‘we’re not going to go and watch it anymore because we’re not enjoying what’s happening’.
“He probably outstayed his time at Arsenal. I think the time he should have left was after beating Chelsea.”
Do you agree with Parlour's verdict on when Wenger should have left Arsenal? Have your say here.
Parlour, who won six major honours in his eight seasons under Wenger, also praised his former manager for his devotion to Arsenal despite European giants routinely trying to lure him away.
The former Gunners midfielder added: “He was a very loyal man. He did have lots of offers; Real Madrid were really after him.
“As a manger he was very loyal to say, ‘I will sign a five-year contract’, because he more or less guaranteed the bank that he would get into the Champions League every season.”
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