Arsene Wenger signed a new Arsenal contract in late March, but according to the French manager, there was a significant period of time where that was in doubt.
“Yes I hesitated about signing a new contract for personal reasons,” Wenger told French TV program Telefoot. “I have been at Arsenal for 20 years and I ask myself all the time if I should continue to run the club. And also because we struggled a lot last season. Coaching a different club would be possible.”
When pressed about another club, he mentioned Paris Saint-Germain by name as a club that “there have been contacts” with recently.
Wenger has come under fire repeatedly in the past few years as Arsenal has slipped from its usual powerhouse stature. The Premier League’s longest tenured manager most recently endured a 4-0 defeat to Liverpool before the international break, but insisted that despite sitting in 16th position with just three points, Arsenal still has a shot to win the league, or at least challenge for a top spot in the table.
“Despite everything the team has real potential and we must recover as always in times of crisis and we must win the next game. Can Arsenal win the league this season? It’s possible.”
Just a week ago, in the immediate aftermath of the brutal Liverpool defeat, Wenger told fans, “If some people feel as if I am the problem then I am sorry that I am the problem but we want our fans to be with us even in a losing performance like that.”