Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will not follow Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino into publishing a book: 'I don't like to talk and not tell the truth'

  • Arsene Wenger will not publish a book while he remains Arsenal manager
  • He has not read Mauricio Pochettino's behind-the-scenes account of last season
  • The Arsenal boss fears his honesty would land him in trouble if he did the same
  • 'As long as you are in work, you cannot really tell people what is going on'

Arsene Wenger has ruled out following Mauricio Pochettino into publishing a book – because it would force him to lie.

The Arsenal manager has not yet read his Tottenham counterpart's behind-the-scenes account of last season.

But on the eve of Saturday's north London derby, he admitted it would be impossible for him to do the same while he is still actively involved in management because his honesty would land him in trouble.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will not publish a book while he remains in management

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will not publish a book while he remains in management

Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino has released a behind-the-scenes account of last season
But Wenger has no intention of following his counterpart from across north London

Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino has released a behind-the-scenes account of last season

Wenger said: 'For me, I would not do one at the moment. That is because I don't like to talk and not tell the truth.


'As long as you are in work, you cannot really tell people what is going on. Just to sell a book? I'll leave that to others. I have no interest.

'If it is to tell really what I think about the game and what I think about some aspects of our game, I will do it but at the moment it is impossible.

'I haven't read Pochettino's book, no. It is because I have no time, not because it is not interesting. Also because I have a good experience of managing (and don't need to read the experiences of others).

'I have nothing against it (Pochettino publishing a book). I am open-minded about the book. But I have not much time in my schedule to read it.'

Wenger's record in the North London derby makes pleasant reading from an Arsenal standpoint, with 22 wins and only eight defeats in 50 clashes with Spurs across all competitions. 

Wenger has yet to beat Pochettino in six north London derbies in the Premier League

Wenger has yet to beat Pochettino in six north London derbies in the Premier League

But it is notable that he is yet to win in six Premier League attempts since Pochettino took over at Tottenham in 2014 and this fixture comes at a time when the Argentine's side appear to be pulling further away from Arsenal.

Last season marked the first time since Wenger's arrival in 1996 that Tottenham finished higher in the table and a four-point gap has already opened in this campaign.

Wenger has tried to play down any importance in the shifting of local power, saying: 'I was always more focussed on finishing in the Champions League (than finishing ahead of Tottenham).

'When we had less resources financially I knew that we needed the money to pay the stadium back, so I was more focussed on that than on Tottenham. I was never too focussed on Tottenham.'

And yet, despite that previous indifference, a defeat at the Emirates Stadium this weekend would grossly sharpen the supporter anger towards their manager. 

'It's down to us to change the opinions of people with our performances,' Wenger said

'It's down to us to change the opinions of people with our performances,' Wenger said

It is a quirk of the club that any defeat seems to spark a crisis among fans and former players, and a home loss against Spurs would exaggerate that substantially.

It is no secret that there are figures at the club who would have favoured a new era in the summer, but even with a new contract Wenger's situation is less than sturdy, with his chief scout Steve Rowley, a close ally, poised to leave.

Wenger, for his part, continues to exude calm in the situation and some, curiously, see that as symptomatic of the problem. His dismissiveness of Lee Dixon's comments this week about when Arsenal players used to pin one another to the dressing room wall, shouting for derby-day passion, was typical of how he sees his situation: yelling these days will get you nowhere, that this important game will have more nuance to it than desire.

Whether the fans will see it that way in the event of defeat remains to be seen.

'It's down to us to change the opinions of people with our performances,' Wenger said. 'We need to show it on Saturday.'  

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