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Arsene Wenger will be manager of Arsenal for at least another two years
The Gunners announced the deal for the 67-year-old Frenchman on Wednesday
It comes after months of unrest among some groups of Arsenal supporters
READ: How Wenger racked up contracts worth £100million at Arsenal

By Sami Mokbel for MailOnline and Sam Morshead For Mailonline

Published: 08:31 EDT, 31 May 2017 | Updated: 12:50 EDT, 31 May 2017

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Arsene Wenger has declared his love for Arsenal after extending his contract for a further two years.

The Frenchman, whose reign at the north London side already stands at more than two decades, has put pen to paper on fresh terms at the Emirates Stadium.

Following months of unrest among groups of Gunners fans, with many becoming frustrated about a perceived lack of progress under Wenger, the 67-year-old's contract was ratified at a board meeting on Tuesday.

Arsenal have confirmed a new two-year contract for their manager Arsene Wenger

And Arsenal confirmed football's worst-kept secret on Wednesday.

'I love this club and I am looking forward to the future with optimism and excitement,' Wenger said in a statement.

'We are looking at what we do well and how we can be stronger everywhere. This is a strong group of players and with some additions we can be even more successful.

The message to the fans is in aid of the club. Let's be together to support our players, to support the club and all give our absolute best to be at the level that we want to be.

Arsene Wenger

'We're committed to mounting a sustained league challenge and that will be our focus this summer and next season.'

It is understood Wenger told American owner Stan Kroenke of his wish to stay before the meeting. Despite resistance from some board members to the Frenchman staying — even after Saturday's FA Cup final victory — Kroenke ultimately decides.

'I am grateful to have the support of the board and Stan in doing everything we can to win more trophies,' Wenger said.

Wenger has had owner Stan Kroenke's support throughout a trying period at the club

WENGER'S ARSENAL HONOURS

Premier League (3): 1997–98, 2001–02, 2003–04

FA Cup (7): 1997–98, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2016–17

'It's what we all want and I know it's what our fans around the world demand.'

Kroenke, meanwhile, emphasised Arsenal's desire to challenge for the Premier League title once again, despite a fifth-placed finish this season.

'Our ambition is to win the Premier League and other major trophies in Europe,' he said.

'It's what the fans, players, staff, manager and board expect and we won't rest until that is achieved.

'Arsene is the best person to help us make that happen. He has a fantastic track record and has our full backing.'

Wenger lifted the FA Cup with Arsenal for the seventh time following victory over Chelsea

The Frenchman has been in charge of the north London club for the past 21 years

Wenger has been openly critical of the treatment he has received from some sections of the Arsenal fanbase over recent months, with protests against his stewardship becoming more and more common.

Planes carrying messages urging him to leave have flown over the Emirates, marches have been staged around the stadium and banners and placards have been brought into the ground appealing for Wenger to go.

However, now the deal has been done, he has called for unity.

'The message to the fans is in aid of the club. Let's be together to support our players, to support the club and all give our absolute best to be at the level that we want to be,' he said.

'We can move up to the next level, I'm convinced of that, by having faith in the way we want to play football and by supporting the players we have already.

Wenger gave a detailed interview to Arsenal Player about his decision to stay at the club

'Of course we'll try to strengthen our squad to be stronger next season, but we want to be faithful to the way we want to play the game. We want to support this way [of playing] all together.'

The Arsenal boss has agreed to certain adjustments in Arsenal's football operation to appease some board members opposed to his continuing as manager.

Wenger will have the final say on all first-team matters but the club may well bring in a sporting director to work alongside him. Arsenal want to see the man in charge show more conviction in the transfer market.

Some members of Wenger's backroom team face an anxious wait to see if they will survive the shake-up. Wenger has always been loyal to his inner circle in his 21 years at the club but he is under pressure to revamp his coaching team.

Goalkeeper coach Gerry Peyton and fitness coach Tony Colbert are among those who could be under threat. Those leaving will be told in the next 48 hours.

Some members of Wenger's staff left to go on holiday after Saturday's FA Cup final win over Chelsea.

WHAT WENGER TOLD ARSENAL TV

Arsene, you and the club have signed a new two-year contract. It's a big moment, how are you feeling about it?

I'm happy and excited. Happy because I can work where I love to be. As well because this club cherishes the values I love. I'm excited because I believe that our end of season is a big springboard to go for more. We have created a dynamic that is very positive and we want to build on that and transfer that positive end of season [form] to the new season.

In the end, was it an easy decision or a difficult decision?

For me it's always easy on a loving affair because I identify myself so much with the club. When you can be where you love to be, that's easy. It's difficult because you want to respond to the demands of all the people who love this club. This is of course a job that demands 100 per cent commitment and you want to be at that level to make sure you can make everyone happy.

What's your message to the fans after signing up for two more years?

The message to the fans is in aid of the club. Let's be together to support our players, to support the club and all give our absolute best to be at the level that we want to be. We can move up to the next level, I'm convinced of that, by having faith in the way we want to play football and by supporting the players we have already. Of course we'll try to strengthen our squad to be stronger next season, but we want to be faithful to the way we want to play the game. We want to support this way [of playing] all together.

What's the owner said to you about our ambitions?

They are of course unlimited, our ambitions. We live in a very competitive world where you need the support of the owner as well. He's highly ambitious and supportive as well so, on that front, we are all united with exactly the same targets.

When you look back at the 2016-17 season, how do you view it as a whole?

As a whole, I think the first part of the season was very positive. We went 20 games unbeaten, including the Champions League, and we finished top of the group in the Champions League. After that, the turning point was maybe the Everton and Manchester City games where we dropped our level away from home a little bit. We were unbeaten away from home for a long, long time. The negative side and other turning points were certainly the Bayern Munich games where we had very positive results at half-time but at the end of the game we were very frustrated.

[It was] under very special circumstances but it deeply affected the confidence of the team. I believe the outside uncertainty over my situation had an impact on the team as well, and after that I think we regrouped. We could have been divided but we have shown great resilience and were united to bounce back very strongly. We finished the season in a very convincing way. We won 10 of our last 11 games and that is absolutely difficult. We played against all the difficult opponents, so we finished the season in a very strong way with a very strong dynamic. That's why I told you that we want to transfer that into the new season.

Wenger hinted at structural changes within the club over the course of the summer

In terms of the playing squad, what changes do you expect this summer?

First of all, we have a very heavy squad at the moment so maybe we might lose some players. We want to keep the strength we have and build on that. We will work very hard to find the additions of top, top quality. I believe that our squad is very strong and we will only look for top-class people who can strengthen our team now. The basis is there so we need the additions who will make a real difference.

Are you looking at any particular areas of the team?

First of all, we look at the top, top quality available. We have seen in the recent games against Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United that we are a very strong team. For us it's very important that we only consider the players who can really make a difference, no matter where it is.

What other changes do you expect?

Maybe on the non-playing side for example... On that front, we always want to be better. We live in a very competitive world where everybody tries to get better. We look to be stronger everywhere. We want to perform better in every department, so of course we want to have the best team around the team. We look at everything.

We forget that we have top-quality people already and, if you look closely at the players who left us, every player who came here became a better player. You cannot say about every player who left us. We have a very good record with the team and the improvement of the players here. We have to continue that but we are also looking everywhere to become even better.

Source: arsenal.com