Wenger wanted to keep Pires

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger claims he wanted to keep French midfielder Robert Pires at the club.

But Wenger was only prepared to offer Pires a one-year contract to stay and the Frenchman decided to join Villarreal.

Wenger revealed: “Personally, I wanted to keep him.

“It’s not easy to take. You look behind you and you see what’s coming behind is strong.

“It’s an everyday challenge from the young boys who are ready to give 100 per cent to show that they are better than you.

“So I believe that he decided to go. He was aware that he would not definitely be automatically first choice.

“I can understand that. He was at the stage of his career where he wanted to play regularly and, at 33, to come in and out, it’s difficult.

“Don’t forget, he’s almost 36 now.

“But he is someone who I would have loved to have stayed longer.

“He was such an example, him and Dennis Bergkamp. They were quite similar.

“You give them a ball and they could have stayed out there on the training pitch the whole day.”

[Source: The Sun]