The safety precaution Wenger took during his last two years at Arsenal
Arsenal employed a bodyguard for Arsene Wenger to keep him safe amid fan unrest, according to an updated book.
Mirror journalist John Cross released a new version of his book The Inside Story of Arsenal Under Wenger, following Wenger’s departure from The Emirates at the end of last season.
Wenger still had one year remaining on his contract, and it has become increasingly clear that the timing of his departure was set by the Arsenal board rather than through a mutual decision.
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In December 2014, when anti-Wenger sentiment started to dominate fan opinion, Wenger was verbally abused by disappointed fans at a train station following a 3-2 defeat to Stoke City.
Cross reveals that Arsenal decided to recruit a bodyguard to keep Wenger safe from 2016 until the end of his tenure. The move was as a result of greater perceived threats to Wenger’s safety, including the risks posed by terrorism.
This was a wider security precaution, influenced partly by the global threat of terrorism.
Wenger was replaced by Unai Emery, who has brought in Lucas Torreira, Stephan Lichtsteiner, Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Bernd Leno and Matteo Guendouzi, but overseen consecutive defeats to Manchester City and Chelsea in their opening Premier League games.
