When asked about what advice he would give his younger self, Arsene Wenger’s reply was pretty sad.

Being in charge of a football club has its ups and downs. Especially if that football club is Arsenal. Needless to say, Arsene Wenger has gone through more than his fair share of suffering during his 20 years as manager. However, it’s still pretty upsetting to hear him say his advice to his younger self, becoming Arsenal manager in 1996, was to not think about the suffering he’s about to endure.

“I would say, ‘Don’t imagine all the suffering you will go through! Just focus on the happy moments you could live because you need to be tenacious to spend 20 years at a football club. You need to be brave as well and you need to have quite a good capacity of survival in the difficult moments’,” he told Arsenal Player.

Of course, as usual with Arsene, he even gives himself sound advice and does so with a wry smile. But just hearing him talk about the suffering that he’s had to withstand, often at the hands of his own fans, is a little harrowing.

If Wenger goes continue after his contract runs out in 2017, I hope he makes more positive memories and if he doesn’t, I hope he can remember this period of his life as the best.