Could Real land Wenger? It’s not as crazy as it sounds

THE prospect of Arsene Wenger taking over as the manager of Real Madrid may seem bizarre. In fact, it is far from that. Real courted Wenger for several years after he proved such a success in his early seasons at Arsenal. Real president Florentino Perez and Jorge Valdano — sporting director at the time — met Wenger at a hotel at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport in May 2003. Wenger could not be tempted to leave Arsenal at that time. He insisted he would honour his contract at Arsenal, which still had two years to run. Perez admired the Frenchman’s ethics — and the pair have talked frequently over the years. The Real chief respects Wenger’s views on football and has previously sought his advice on managers he had in mind to take over at the Bernabeu. Now he could finally get his man. Wenger is yet to decide where he will work next season. He had a successful spell at Nagoya Grampus Eight in Japan before joining Arsenal and embraced the culture of the country. There have also been offers from China and the USA. But at Real, Wenger would be able to realise his ambition of winning the Champions League. He almost did it with Arsenal in 2006 when they were beaten 2-1 by Barcelona in Paris. Arsenal never came as close again. But the competition remains an obsession for Wenger — and at the Bernabeu, he would have a squad of proven winners. Last Saturday, Real won the Champions League for the third successive season, so the pedigree is there. Wenger would also be able to operate without the restrictions imposed on him by Arsenal’s financial structure. The probable scenario would be a two-year contract and that would be time enough for Wenger, who will be 69 later this year, to add the trophy that has always eluded him.