Nacho Monreal says Arsène Wenger 'suffered' during final years at Arsenal

Updated: 01 Nov, 2025 • 0 • min read

Table of Contents

Nacho Monreal says Arsène Wenger 'suffered' during final years at Arsenal

Photo: Getty Images

Former Arsenal defender Nacho Monreal has opened up about the emotional strain legendary boss Arsène Wenger endured during his final years at the club, claiming the Frenchman "suffered a lot" as fan divisions deepened over his future.

Wenger brought an end to his remarkable 22-year spell in North London in 2018 after Arsenal failed to qualify for the Champions League for a second successive season.

By that point, supporters were split between those who still backed the veteran manager and those calling for change.

Monreal, who played under Wenger from 2013 to 2018, says that the growing tension took a visible toll on the man who transformed Arsenal.

'He Lost Weight - He Was Suffering a Lot'

Speaking to Ladbrokes at the launch of "Ladisfaction," Monreal recalled the difficult atmosphere surrounding Wenger's final campaigns.

Arsène leaving the club was of course a sad moment for us, because I knew he was suffering a lot.

Before he was sacked, there was a period where there was a real split between supporters, which was crazy. I can literally remember, as a player, seeing banners on one side of the stadium saying "Wenger Out," and then banners on the other side saying "Wenger In."

I can remember seeing Arsène at the training ground around that time and he was suffering a lot. He lost weight; you know, he was pretty skinny anyway, but I remember seeing him one day and really noticing it.

It got to a point where he'd even stopped enjoying our wins, because the atmosphere around the place just wasn't good.

Monreal added that players sensed a major change was coming long before Wenger's exit was confirmed.

As players we knew that there would be an announcement coming fairly soon. And when that day arrived, of course, we were all in shock, even though we had a feeling something might happen.

'A Complete Reset'

The Spaniard described Wenger's departure as a "complete reset" for the club.

We're talking about somebody who had a say on pretty much everything to do with the club, so this was going to be a complete reset.

No one really knew what the future was going to look like.

Wenger's era remains one of the most successful in Arsenal's history.

He managed 1,234 games, winning 715 of them, and led the club to three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups.

He is still the only manager in Premier League history to go unbeaten for an entire season, guiding the "Invincibles" to the 2003/04 title with 26 wins and 12 draws.

For any enquiries, please contact us here.