By Lewis Rutledge Last updated: 13th September 2007
Arsene Wenger has revealed he only briefly thought about not signing his new contract at Arsenal.
The French tactician put an end to months of speculation about his future last week by putting pen-to-paper on a deal that ties him to the club for another four years.
Wenger has been in charge of The Gunners since 1996 and admits he considered which direction he wanted to take with his life.
But in the end he was happy to sign and he is now excited about leading Arsenal through until 2011.
"I am more committed than ever to do well for the club and I want to go very far with this team because I have strong belief in the players that I work with at the moment," Wenger told Sky Sports News at the launch of the Arsenal Opus.
"There was some scepticism among people but I have always had strong belief in these players.
"You always wonder 'can you do well enough for the club' and you also have to think what kind of orientation you want to give to your life, because at every stage of your career you have to make choices about which way you want to go.
"So you think about it but there was never really any doubt."
Asked what the key factors were in his decision to stay with Arsenal, Wenger added: "The fact that I can help this team to improve, the fact that I have conditions here to work the way I love to work, and the fact that I feel I can push this club high up."
| Time | Fixture |
|---|---|
| Saturday 16th August | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 15:00 | Arsenal vs West Brom |
| 15:00 | Aston Villa vs Man City |
| 15:00 | Bolton vs Stoke |
| 15:00 | Chelsea vs Portsmouth |
| 15:00 | Everton vs Blackburn |
| 15:00 | Hull vs Fulham |
| 15:00 | Man Utd vs Newcastle |
| 15:00 | Middlesbrough vs Tottenham |
| 15:00 | Sunderland vs Liverpool |
| 15:00 | West Ham vs Wigan |
| Saturday 23rd August | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 15:00 | Blackburn vs Hull |
| 15:00 | Fulham vs Arsenal |
| 15:00 | Liverpool vs Middlesbrough |
| 15:00 | Man City vs West Ham |
| 15:00 | Newcastle vs Bolton |
| 15:00 | Portsmouth vs Man Utd |
| 15:00 | Stoke vs Aston Villa |
| 15:00 | Tottenham vs Sunderland |
| 15:00 | West Brom vs Everton |
| 15:00 | Wigan vs Chelsea |
| Time | Result |
|---|---|
| Sunday 11th May | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Chelsea 1 - 1 Bolton | |
| Tottenham 0 - 2 Liverpool | |
| Wigan 0 - 2 Man Utd | |
| Birmingham 4 - 1 Blackburn | |
| Derby 0 - 4 Reading | |
| West Ham 2 - 2 Aston Villa | |
| Middlesbrough 8 - 1 Man City | |
| Everton 3 - 1 Newcastle | |
| Portsmouth 0 - 1 Fulham | |
| Sunderland 0 - 1 Arsenal | |
| Monday 5th May | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Newcastle 0 - 2 Chelsea | |
| Sunday 4th May | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Arsenal 1 - 0 Everton | |
| Liverpool 1 - 0 Man City | |
| Saturday 3rd May | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Man Utd 4 - 1 West Ham | |
| Aston Villa 0 - 2 Wigan | |
| Blackburn 3 - 1 Derby | |
| Middlesbrough 2 - 0 Portsmouth | |
| Bolton 2 - 0 Sunderland | |
| Fulham 2 - 0 Birmingham | |
| Reading 0 - 1 Tottenham | |
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