Arsenal chief executive officer Ivan Gazidis has hinted the club will give manager Arsene Wenger a new deal when his current contract expires and insists they are in the hunt for trophies this term.
There has been sections of the media and club’s support who have questioned Wenger’s ability to deliver for the Gunners who have gone several seasons now without silverware.
However, Gazidis was adamant that the Frenchman is the right man for the club and suggested Wenger will decide when he leaves Arsenal.
“It’s not a sense of sentimentalism, not a reward for services, it’s a belief that we have an incredible manager who loves this club and is the best man to lead us forward,” Gazidis said to The Telegraph.
“We’re really confident about the direction that the club is heading. I feel he can keep going for a long time. He’s in fantastic shape and he’s as driven as he’s ever been and excited as ever.”
He added: “As a club, we have to make sure that all of the things that Arsene has brought to the club are enshrined in our DNA to make sure that, when Arsene decides it’s time, we are in a position to take his ideas and work forward.”
Gazidis also said he backed Wenger’s approach to football, with some claiming Arsenal are style over substance.
“We’re not dominated by fear. Arsene never succumbs. We try to do more than win, we try to win with style,” Gazidis said.
“I know we haven’t won trophies in recent years. There’s no one here that doesn’t feel the pain of not being able to do that. We’re very optimistic about this season. We’re absolutely trying to win silverware and we’re trying desperately hard to do it this year.
“We can get into extensive debate about individual decisions - and like all clubs we are not perfect - but the ultimate arbiter of whether you are spending your money efficiently is where did you finish in the Premier League versus your overall spending.
“When you look at what Arsene has done, within the overall constraints, he has outperformed our spending every single year he has been manager. It is extraordinary.”