Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has got a fancy new job and yesterday it took him to Belfast for a meeting of the International Football Association Board (IFAB).
The Frenchman recently
took up the post of head of global football development at FIFA and one of his first assignments took him Laganside to discuss issues such as video assistant referees, concussion management and potential rule changes for the 2020/2021 season.
In what appeared to be a flying visit, Wenger found time to speak about his respect for the fans of Northern Ireland, highlighting his view that their "passion is never aggressive and always very lively"...
https://twitter.com/OfficialIrishFA/status/1201900607109521409
Wenger also reserved high praise for legendary Northern Ireland player, the late George Best...
https://twitter.com/NorthernIreland/status/1201946956886495232
The 70-year-old appeared to be in good spirits but there are plenty of people around Belfast who are raging that they missed him while he was in town...
https://twitter.com/KAPOWELLED/status/1202013914067849219
https://twitter.com/garethcmurray/status/1201952157299355650
https://twitter.com/StevenONeill4/status/1201945881525788676
https://twitter.com/RuairiWoods/status/1201942344632872960
https://twitter.com/R_Faragher/status/1201927132873707520
https://twitter.com/JoshStewart1996/status/1201927074744852480
https://twitter.com/iamscassidy/status/1201923481367175170
https://twitter.com/afcjaybrady/status/1201909240694235136
https://twitter.com/aaron_vc/status/1201840193260736512
The love for Arsene Wenger is clearly still strong among football fans after his 22-year stint as Arsenal manager ended in May 2018. While in the Gunners hot seat, Wenger won three Premier League titles a record seven FA Cups, a haul which included domestic doubles in 1998 and 2002. He also oversaw an unbeaten league season in 2003/2004 with a squad that included the likes of Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira.
With Michael O'Neill set to leave the Nothern Ireland dugout in 2020, could Belfast have charmed Wenger enough to take up the Windsor Park job? Only time, and presumably a very large pay packet, will tell.
(header pic: @OfficialIrishFA)
