Arteta's olive branch leads to emotional Emirates return and statue for legend

Arsene Wenger came bounding towards the front of the Emirates Stadium on the morning of Thursday, August 3. He stopped, craned his neck upwards and pointed.

‘Who is this?’ he joked, looking at a shiny, new bronze statue. The supporters, gathered behind the cordon, laughed.

It was the statue that had taken four years to complete. Wenger’s former partner Annie and daughter Lea were there, too, to see the sculpture.

The unveiling extended to a private lunch at the Emirates where former managers, ex-Arsenal stars, current boss Mikel Arteta and sporting director Edu gathered in tribute to a man who transformed the club across 22 years.

Yet the statue — the tallest of the six at the stadium, measuring three and a half metres — represents more than just a grand gesture. It is the completion of a long, complicated journey behind the scenes from acrimony to a place of acceptance and love.

At the Emirates Cup match between Arsenal and Monaco on August 2, the cameras panned to the 73-year-old in the stands.

Cheers erupted, and at full time Wenger made his way to the changing room to greet the players. But the Frenchman was there for more than a match between two sides he had managed.

The next day was the statue unveiling and an intimate lunch for a select few. And it really was just a few, a number of his former players having missed out on an invite because of its intimate nature. Some were surprised at how Wenger was not presented on the pitch at the game or given a big reception at the following day’s event. Yet those close to the club say, typical of the man, he wanted no fuss.

He had been emailed designs of the statue for him to OK before the sculpture was given the go-ahead. The result was a bronze statue depicting Wenger holding