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Arsene Wenger is a beauty facilitator who lives in the future
This is one of the strangest and most hilarious interviews Arsenal’s manager has ever given.
Ben Hoskins/Getty Images
In much of the football world, Arsene Wenger is a very well-respected manager. The longtime Arsenal chief has accomplished much in the 19 years he's been in charge of the Gunners, and especially in his native France, he's highly admired as one of the best managers around. He's also long been known to give a pretty amusing interview when you catch him in the right mood, and that's certainly the case in this new interview he's done with French outlet L'Equipe.
Wenger was asked about having a “mystical power” over his players, and his response was an all-time classic:
Religiously, it is said that God created man. I am only a guide. I allow others to express what they have in them. I have not created anything. I am a facilitator of what is beautiful in man.
I define myself as an optimist. My constant battle in this business is to get out there what is beautiful in man. We can at this level portray me as naive. At the same time, it allows me to believe it and it often gives me reason.
As if being a facilitator of man’s beauty isn’t enough, Wenger also apparently “still live[s] in the future,” has a “scary” relationship with time, and is both sad and happy that he doesn’t have to read the bible to his players before matches now. Apparently it “works less” today, but that means that his team “does not necessarily need God to win.”
The full interview -- which apparently includes a fashion photo shoot for some reason -- will be released by L’Equipe on Saturday. It should be well worth reading based on what they’ve released so far.
Manager introduction of the day
Did someone forget to wash the Aston Villa shirt that they gave Remi Garde? Because he’s holding that thing like it’s diseased or smells bad or maybe is cursed.
In the news
Carli Lloyd’s goal from the halfway line in the Women’s World Cup final is on the Puskas award shortlist for best goal of the year. (ESPN FC)
Former USMNT boss Bob Bradley has been hired by French Ligue 2 side Le Havre AC. (VG)
Jose Mourinho will not appeal his one-match stadium ban, and will miss Chelsea’s match against Stoke on Saturday. (Guardian)
Karim Benzema has “not confessed” to blackmail charges, according to his lawyer. (ESPN FC)
Louis Van Gaal wants angry Manchester United fans to boo him, not his players. (BBC)
You should be reading
Richard Foster looks at swift-rising non-league club FC United of Manchester and their commitment to their fans over finances. (Guardian)
Nick Miller thinks “Ronaldo,” the movie about Real Madrid megastar Cristiano Ronaldo, fails to be anything but a vanity project. (ESPN FC)
What happened in Thursday’s matches
Napoli locked up a Europa League knockout round spot with a 5-0 win over Midtjylland. (The Siren’s Song)
Tottenham Hotspur battled to a late 2-1 win over Anderlecht to go back to the top of their Europa League group. (Cartilage Free Captain)
Fiorentina got revenge on Lech Poznan for last month’s Europa League upset with a 2-0 win. (Viola Nation)
The score was only 1-0, but Liverpool played excellently against Rubin Kazan to get their first Europa League win of the season. (The Liverpool Offside)
The rest of the Europa League matchday was pretty exciting as well, with three other teams joining Napoli in locking up knockout round spots early. (UEFA)
What to watch on Friday (click for listings, all times ET)
Bundesliga: Hannover 96 vs. Hertha BSC (2:30 p.m.): A battle between a team hoping to crack the top four and a team trying to stay out of the bottom three is always worth watching, because that kind of desperation always brings out a little bit of something extra.
La Liga: Las Palmas vs. Real Sociedad (2:30 p.m.): David Moyes is fighting for his job, and what better help is there for that than a team in the relegation zone?
Championship: Nottingham Forest vs. Derby County (2:45 p.m.): This match could see red-hot Derby end the weekend in first place in the Championship, but arch-rival Nottingham Forest won’t make that easy, especially as they’re fighting to pull further clear of the relegation zone.
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