Arsene Wenger last night hailed Gianfranco Zola as the
best player he never signed.
Wenger will be in the opposite dug-out to Zola for the first
time tomorrow admitting the West Ham boss would have been perfect
for his Arsenal team.
Gunners boss Wenger also believes Chelsea legend Zola will prove
to be a successful manager - and will show nice guys don't always
come last.
Wenger said: "He was an Arsenal player, he went in the wrong
direction!
We had Bergkamp and we had Kanu and we had Pires.
"He had a team mentality as well, he wasn't only a star player.
I like him as a player, as a man, and I am sure he will be a good
manager.
"He has to be given time because he has just come in. In the
Premier League now it is massive pressure and you have to feel
first that you have been given time when you come into a job like
that. I am sure he will do well."
Wenger has revealed that he is set to fine fit-again club
captain William Gallas after he was pictured with an unlit
cigarette in his mouth when leaving a nightclub - even though the
Arsenal manager admits he used to smoke.
He added: "In France we all smoke. I've been on buses where you
wouldn't believe it - you couldn't see each other. When I was a
young coach sometimes I had one because my assistant would have
one."
