Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta revealed his players did not know former boss Arsene Wenger would be in the stands for their Premier League win against West Ham.
Wenger was in charge of the Gunners for more than 20 years before leaving his post at the end of the 2017-18 season. He had stayed away ever since, so much so that current star Bukayo Saka never had the opportunity to meet the Frenchman, but made his long-awaited return on Monday.
For a while, it looked as though Wenger might be in north London to witness the Gunners' first home defeat of the season as Said Benrahma fired the visitors ahead from the penalty spot. Three second-half goals saw the league leaders prevail, though, with Eddie Nketiah - a man handed his senior debut by Wenger - completing the turnaround.
“No, the players didn’t know,” Arteta said when asked about Wenger's presence. “We wanted to keep it quiet and allow that space for Arsene. A very special day, thank you so much to him for coming.
“Hopefully walking through the building he’s going to feel everything that he left here as well. His presence is something that has to be very, very attached to this football club so thank (him) for doing that because it means a lot for everybody at the club.
“I’ve been involved in the process (of bringing him) but it’s about him, the timing he needed to make that step and hopefully he’s going to leave here and be willing to spend more time with us and be around us because he is such an influence. For me personally, in my career, the way I see the game but as well for this football club.”
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Arsenal had a goal chalked off for offside inside the first five minutes, and went behind when Benrahma converted from the spot after William Saliba brought down Jarrod Bowen. The second half was one-way traffic, though, with Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Nketiah all on target.
“Obviously it’s great,” Arteta added. “Winning, my mood, it’s going to be much better to speak to him [Wenger] and be around the team.
“So, yeah, he picked the right moment, a really special day because Boxing Day is a beautiful day to play football and I thought the performance was at the level today that we deserve, and hopefully he will like it.”
The victory was Arsenal's fourth on the spin, after wins over Nottingham Forest, Chelsea and Wolves before the international break. The result lifted Arteta's side seven points clear of Newcastle United, who won at Leicester earlier in the day, though third-placed Manchester City can bring the gap down to five if they win at Leeds United on Wednesday.
