Wenger bids adieu to Old Trafford
Man United pays tribute to Arsenal manager — and delivers parting shot
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND— There was no perfect ending to Arsene Wenger’s iconic 22-season rivalry with Manchester United.
Instead, it was an all-too-familiar feeling for the departing Arsenal manager.
Honoured and embraced before kickoff by past and present United managers Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho, Wenger trudged away from Old Trafford nursing another painful loss after Arsenal’s young and weakened side conceded an injury-time goal on Sunday.
Marouane Fellaini glanced in a header in the first minute of stoppage time to earn United a 2-1 win in Wenger’s last match at Old Trafford before he leaves Arsenal at the end of the season.
Old Trafford has defined Wenger’s time in English soccer more than any other visiting stadium. Arsenal’s 1-0 win in 1998 sparked an unlikely rally to win the league at the expense of United. Another 1-0 win in 2002 clinched a second league title.
Since then, it’s been just one Premier League victory at Old Trafford in 16 years for Arsenal and some bad memories — the 8-2 hammering in 2011, the 6-1 thrashing in 2001, the ending of the unbeaten run of the “Invincibles” in 2004 and the sending-off in 2009 that forced Wenger to watch a game among the United fans.
Ferguson was Wenger’s greatest rival but Mourinho was arguably his most bitter, and a loss like Sunday’s would have hurt the Frenchman. Especially so with his young team — featuring two 20-year-olds and an 18year-old — doing their best with many senior players rested ahead of the second leg of the Europa League semifinal against Atletico Madrid on Thursday.
“Unfortunately in my job, you remember much better the defeats than the victories,” Wenger said, “and I have some painful memories here.”
Wenger was applauded to the dugout by United fans — “Once you are not a danger any more, people love you,” he said — and received a vase from Ferguson before kickoff. Mourinho then shook his hand warmly.
The result ensured Arsenal cannot finish above rival Tottenham and guaranteed United a top-four finish and a spot in next season’s Champions League.