An interview with Arsene Wenger

FCB: You have just become an ambassador for Castrol who are a UEFA Euro 2008 sponsor.  Tell us a bit about your role with them.
AW: Castrol are a sponsor of UEFA EURO 2008 and they are developing the Castrol Performance Index, which will be a new way to analyse, rate and rank players and teams at the tournament.  The data for the Index is coming from the new UEFA Tracking System, which monitors performance on the pitch in real time, and so I’m helping Castrol take the data from the tracking system and develop this Performance Index.

FCB: What is the importance of such a system when coaching a highly successful team?
AW: It is critical because the game is played by 11 players and you have only two eyes to observe everything on the pitch. The more concrete data you can have, the happier you are in terms of making the right judgement. Sometimes you are guided too much by the result and can misjudge performances. Data like this helps rate players who maybe you have neglected too much and helps everyone take a more objective view. It benefits the game enormously by allowing fans to take more interest and feel they understand better what’s going on. It adds something to their assessment about particular players. You’d go backwards 10 or 20 years without statistical data.

FCB: How will the Performance Index affect Euro 2008?
AW: It will have an enormous affect on the championship because anyone who doesn’t perform in his position will be rated as a failure.

FCB: Would you ever use such statistics when deciding whether to buy a player?
AW: Certainly. In fact I’m in fact addicted to these kinds of statistics. You can assess strengths and weaknesses – how many passes a player makes, how many sprints, how many interceptions, assists etc. I’m conscious that if I am wrong when bringing in a player, no matter how good my work is afterwards, I will stay wrong. If a train starts on the wrong track, it cannot get to the right station.

FCB: How does this work at Arsenal?
AW:  I use it to promote young players and add to their game and to see how well players perform in every game and see if they are dropping their level on a consistent level. That’s a sign that something is wrong. It can be an indication to help you manage the player better. Managers before had to rely on their own opinion. Now there are more tools to help you get a more objective view.  You need concrete analysis to check whether your feelings are right or wrong, to make a better assessment. In England, where there is no hiding place physically, a lot of players have had to be thrown out of the game if they cannot produce the required distances. Before such sophisticated stats, a player could hide but not any more. Nowadays you can see the average level of performances in every position. Players know that if they do not perform, they cannot continue to play. It adds pressure on performances and therefore lifts the level of the game.

FCB: But is there not a collision of strategy: a mathematical approach versus playing with flair and adventure?
AW: There is no conflict because the mathematical approach helps you get the person to an intense level. That’s when the freedom to express their flair kicks in. What you are trying to achieve is for a player to perform at a high speed and when he has the ball express what’s inside him.

FCB: You have long had reputation for discovering new talent. When you sign players, what are the criteria for bringing them to the club?
AW: First of all I tell them what our targets are and how we want to reach them. That may sound normal but it’s very difficult sometimes to express what you really want and to identify the kind of player to represent the club. That’s why I believe it’s very important to have a clear vision. When you are scouting you have to get players who represent the values of the club. We have a multi-cultural vision, which, I know, may take time to convince everyone that’s the way forward. I like the commitment of the English game, the pace and speed but as a Continental coach; I can add some technical values. What is good in football is that you don’t need to share the same language. A Russian can play with an American if they both have the same vision. That’s why sport can help society, to show how society could be in 10 or 20 years’ time.

FCB: What’s your secret in terms of motivating players and your philosophy of management?
AW: You may not believe this but when I started in this job, I was always worried about motivating players. A psychologist I know said “my friend you are wasting your time because motivation is a given quality to everyone.” What he meant was that you can only help someone who wants to achieve something. You are not responsible yourself. All you can do is help them achieve that. That’s the real part of management. Don’t be wrong when you scout and afterwards make the players conscious of what you want to achieve.

FCB: How do you react when people say you don’t sign enough English players?
AW: The national team is important for everyone and I can understand they feel I don’t work enough for the English national team and I accept that. But when I scout a player, I don’t look at his passport or background. I don’t care if he’s Brazilian or French, what’s important is whether he can integrate because to be the best is the most important.

FCB: How important was it to you to turn around the image of the “boring Arsenal” tag when you arrived?
AW: I have always believed that you have a responsibility to entertain. If you want a team to develop, you have to have a generous approach. It’s not just about winning the next game; it’s about how close you want to get to perfect football and what is your deep ambition of the game you love. When they accept that, they take off.

FCB: Turning to the Champions League, how do you feel about the current set-up?
AW: Since the introduction of the knockout phase, every year you have surprises but it’s great that in the last three years, an English team has made the final. That means the Premier League has made a big step forward.

FCB: Vis-à-vis Euro 2008, what are your thoughts about who might emerge as the greatest threat?
AW: I think Germany are the up and coming team in Europe. In the last five or six years they have played with the attitude that they are not good enough but they got the feel good feeling back with the World Cup and have looked very strong in Euro qualifying.

FCB: What about England’s chances?
AW: I think they will qualify. I could not understand why they were slaughtered for drawing  0-0 in Israel a few months ago. Few teams beat Israel in Israel, France too only took a point there in the World Cup qualifiers and they got to the World Cup final. Nowhere is there greater pressure on the national coach than in England. It’s extraordinary, there is no forgiveness any more and that’s maybe because they have expected success for so long and the frustration has grown accordingly. But I think the criticism, in one way, is down to the deep love people have for the national team. That’s why when it doesn’t go as well as expected, people get very frustrated.

FCB: Would you ever consider international management?
AW: I’m not sure. With a club you are working on a daily basis plus there is more freedom to build something from nothing. With a country, there are borders you can’t cross. If you have a good generation, you can do good work. If you have no special generation, you can have handcuffs on and get slaughtered from everywhere without any possibility to change things.

FCB: You have long been in favour of goal-line technology. Why is this?
AW: I’m in favour of it big time. I love football and when you love football you like justice to be respected. You should use what is available in order to be right in decision-making. Why should a team be allowed a goal that wasn’t in?