Arsene Wenger reveals reasons for turning down Real Madrid and England jobs to stay with Arsenal
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Arsene Wenger has opened up on his reasons for turning down Real Madrid.
The Frenchman has previously admitted he rejected a host of jobs during his 22 years at Arsenal.
European champions Real were among those Wenger said no to, while he also turned down approaches from Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain.
The first approach from Real is believed to have come in 2004 and Wenger has revealed he felt he would be betraying Arsenal if he quit for the Bernabeu after making a commitment.
"Real Madrid, I think I turned them down two or three times. They are one of the teams I loved as a kid but I felt it was a very sensitive period for Arsenal," he told beIN Sports.
(Image: PA)
"When we built the stadium, the banks asked me to commit for five years. The first time, it was inside the five years and I thought 'I cannot do that', it would be betraying my club."
Wenger also turned down the chance to manage England after Euro 2000 and then reportedly 16 years later following the dismal performances in France.
(Image: beIN SPORTS)
"The daily involvement was important for me and I felt that it should be an English guy that takes the England national team," he added.
"It is a big football country and they have a lot of quality managers. I thought it wasn't right for me. I said no once, twice. I turned so many clubs down, you wouldn't believe it. But I was happy where I was aswell."