Arsenal Manager Arsène Wenger "ridiculed the prospect of working alongside a director of football" and made it clear that he will "only stay" as manager if he "retains final power on all sporting decisions," according to Jeremy Wilson of the London TELEGRAPH. Arsenal has been "actively assessing options" for a new sporting director position to potentially work alongside Wenger -- and CEO Ivan Gazidis told fans that this summer should be a "catalyst for change" -- but the Frenchman is "adamant that he will not fundamentally alter how he works." Asked about the club appointing a director of football figure, Wenger said, "No. I don’t know what director of football means. Is it somebody who stands in the road and directs play right and left? I don’t understand and I never did understand what it means." It was then "put to him that there might be some restructuring around key positions." Wenger: "No, no, no. Sorry, no. I’m not prepared to talk about that. I’m the manager of Arsenal Football Club and as long as I’m manager of Arsenal Football Club, I will decide what happens on the technical front. That’s it." It is a situation that "now clearly suggests considerable distance between the respective visions for Arsenal of Wenger and Gazidis." The bottom line, however, is that the "ultimate decision" on how the club now proceeds will rest with majority Owner Stan Kroenke (TELEGRAPH, 5/9).
