Former Arsenal and Man Utd star Van Persie puts Wenger above Ferguson for one reason

Robin van Persie has picked Arsene Wenger as a bigger influence on his career than Sir Alex Ferguson.

The former Netherlands international broke Arsenal hearts when he moved to Manchester United after scoring 132 goals in 278 appearance in London.

The former Feyenoord striker had the goal of winning the Premier League, and did so in his first season at Old Trafford after scoring 26 league goals.

He told Sport Bible: “The biggest influence must be Wenger, because he was the one who worked with me.

“I came in as a kid and he helped me develop.

“He saw something in me. Sometimes I messed up. I got a silly red card or – as kids do – I made mistakes. But he still gave me another chance.

“Chance after chance sometimes.

“Sir Alex was at a different time because I came as a mature player.

“But I’m very happy to have worked with those two great managers – only a couple of players can say they worked under both!”

Van Persie had scored 37 times in all competitions during his final year in north London, and recently revealed that the Gunners failed to offer him a new deal.

He said: “You can compare [me being at Arsenal] to being married. Me and my wife – Arsenal – were married for eight years.

“After eight years, my wife, possibly got a bit tired of me. Those are the facts.

“If Arsenal are not offering you a new deal… you can have different views on things but the fact is Arsenal never offered me a new deal.

“Then you have a look around. I was ambitious. I still wanted to win the league. That is life.

“I ended up having three options. One option abroad disappeared quickly. Then it was [Manchester] City or Manchester United.”

Van Persie left the Red Devils in 2015 after three seasons at the club, and retired earlier this year after spells with Fenerbahce and Feyenoord.

source: express.co.uk