Arsenal have not yet appointed a permanent manager and there are a lot of names that have been making the rounds over the past week.
There are a few former players in the mix as well and one of them is former Invincible Patrick Vieira who is currently the manager of OGC Nice in France.
Vieira responded to the speculation and seemed to have dropped a major hint. Speaking on the Arsenal job, he told Canal+ via the Mirror:
“You can never ignore a club where you’ve spent nine years.
“But, honestly, I’m focused on this project at Nice, I feel very good here. It’s a very exciting project.”
This sounds like an indication that he would be interested in taking on the role should it be offered to him. He has been the manager of Nice since 2018 and before that, he was in charge of New York City FC. He would not be a complete novice in terms of managing a club as would be the case with someone like Mikel Arteta.
Vieira was one of the first-ever signings that former boss Arsene Wenger made and he went on to become one of the club’s best-ever players. He was a massively popular figure with the fans and it can be argued that the North London club have failed to find a suitable replacement for him.
The Gunners need a manager who could instantly make an impact and propel the club to the next level and going with Vieira carries its own risk as the former midfielder hasn’t really managed at the top level yet.
If the Arsenal board do consider him to be a serious candidate, it is important to get him to the club as soon as possible. The longer they delay this process, it is only going to end up hurting the long-term future of the club.
Vieira won many trophies during his time as a player and it would be safe to assume that he’ll want the same as a manager. Change is needed at a club like Arsenal that are struggling to keep up with the rest of the competition. Fans will be hoping that a solution can be found at the earliest.
