‘I do not want to look somewhere else’ says Wenger, committing to Arsenal

As 1,000 matches with Arsenal arrives, Arsene Wenger says he has no desire to take on a new challenge elsewhere. 'I want to stay here. There shouldn't be any uncertainty at all.'

Arsene Wenger's 1,000th match in charge of Arsenal will come on Saturday March 22, 2014 v Chelsea. Glyn Kirk / AFP
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Arsene Wenger has revealed there should be “no uncertainty at all” over his future as he prepares to celebrate his 1,000th match in charge of Arsenal.

Wenger is out of contract at the end of the current campaign and is yet to sign an extension.

That had triggered speculation Wenger could be ready to quit if Arsenal, who have gone nine years without a trophy, once again fail to secure any silverware this term.

But the 64-year-old Frenchman insists he is not considering leaving and that the formalities of a new deal will be announced soon.

Asked if he would still be at Arsenal after 1,010 matches, Wenger replied: “I think so, yes.

“I want to do well, and the expectation level and the impatience is there.

“My commitment is full. I do not want to look somewhere else. I want to stay here. There shouldn’t be any uncertainty at all. My desire is to stay.”

Wenger maintains he does not want speculation over his contract saga to deflect attention from Arsenal’s run-in as they try to overhaul leaders Chelsea at the top of the Premier League.

“It will be done soon, but I want now to focus on the end of the season,” said Wenger, whose side could close the gap on leaders Chelsea to just one point if they beat their London rivals at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Wenger arrived as an unheralded coach in September 1996 and soon moved to alter the psyche of the club in a successful revolution that eventually brought Arsenal three Premier League titles.

And his success started by quelling the appetite of his players for sugary snacks.

“I changed a few habits (of the players), which isn’t easy in a team where the average age is 30 years,” Wenger said.

“At the first match the players were chanting ‘we want our Mars bars’. Then, at half-time I asked my physio Gary Lewin: ‘Nobody is talking, what’s wrong with them?’ and he replied: ‘They are hungry’.

“I hadn’t given them their chocolate before the game. It was funny.”

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