Ex-Arsenal ace Jack Wilshere has revealed Arsene Wenger's angriest moment as Gunners boss during their shared time at the Emirates.
Former Arsenal manager Wenger was famed for his calm manner both on the touchline and in the dressing room. However, even the Frenchman let his temper get the better of him on occasion, as explained by Wilshere, who spent the entirety of his Arsenal career under the guidance of the three-time Premier League winner.
For all of the joy the north Londoners enjoyed with Wenger as boss in the league and FA Cup, the Champions League eluded him during his 22 years in the Arsenal hot seat. That's not to say the Gunners didn't come close, losing to Barcelona in the 2006 final was arguably their lowest moment during Wenger's reign.
However, it was another encounter with the Blaugrana that left FIFA's current Chief of Global Football Development absolutely seething with rage. In the 2010/11 Champions League, Arsenal got the better of a remarkably talented Barcelona side in the first leg with a 2-1 win at the Emirates.
It all came crashing down though, at the Camp Nou. Lionel Messi fired Pep Guardiola's side in front, before Arsenal then led 3-2 on aggregate when Sergio Busquets headed into his own net, handing the Gunners a crucial away goal in the process.
Minutes later, the tie was turned on its head when Robin van Persie, who had been carded earlier on in the game, was shown a second yellow for kicking the ball away after the whistle had been blown. The Dutchman claimed he couldn't hear the whistle, but referee Massimo Busacca was uninterested in the protests.
Wenger was enraged, as explained by Wilshere. Pressed for comment on what his reaction to the moment was like, the ex-England international told Arsenal's website: "I was thinking ‘what have I just seen?’ I remember being angry, and Arsene was so angry.
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"I knew why he’d been sent off, but it didn’t make sense. The ref was terrible, and I’d never seen Arsene as angry as he was after that game.
"He was usually so calm, and kept us calm, but he knew this was out of his control. That’s when I knew it must have been a bad refereeing performance for him to react like that, with all that he’d seen in the game."
Current Arsenal have a chance to reach the semi-final of the competition on Wednesday night when they meet Bayern Munich at the Allianz. The tie is finely poised, with the scores 2-2 on aggregate after a thrilling first-leg at the Emirates.
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