Arsenal’s former manager George Graham believes Arsene Wenger has been huge for English football.

When Wenger joined Arsenal from Monaco in 1996, no one could have predicted the success he would go on to have. The Frenchman brought a European style of passing football to the Premier League and over time adapted it to suit the physicality the league demanded.

The manager also introduced a new method of managing his players, choosing to talk to them one-on-one privately, rather than shout at them or undermine them in the media.

Speaking about the way Wenger handles his players, specifically in reference to Gabriel’s red card against Chelsea, Graham said, “[Wenger] is not the most strict manager and he really needs to get hold of his own players because there’s no way [Gabriel] should have been sent off – it’s his own stupidity that got him sent off and they’ve got to handle that.

“Arsene does it his way and look at the record he has got in English football – he has been instrumental in getting a certain way of playing, the diet – he’s brought all these things and trophies as well so how can you fault him?”

Next year will mark Wenger’s 20th year at the club, six years less than Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign at Manchester United.

Wenger is currently longest serving manager in the Premier League and has won 417 matches in the competition, only losing 126. His record speaks for itself and the love and respect many Arsenal fans have for him is fully deserved.

Those who don’t appreciate how much he’s done, not just for Arsenal but for the Premier League, don’t realise how good we have it and will continue to have it in the future because of the measures he’s put in place to protect us.

Shame on anyone who doesn’t see what a man he is.