Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger feels that Aston Villa's struggles with a foreign manager made his initial period in England more difficult.

Jozef Venglos took charge at Aston Villa in 1990, following that year's World Cup in Italy. However, the former Czechoslovakia coach was unsuccessful at Villa Park. He had become the first ever manager born outside Britain or Ireland to boss a side in the top division.




Wenger arrived at Arsenal in 1996 and could still feel the effects of Venglos' failure at Villa Park, with suspicion around foreign managers persisting.

 


"When I came here people had the idea that a foreign manager could not be successful in England", Wenger explained via his club's site.

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"It didn’t work at Aston Villa so I had more to fight against the pre-conceived idea that a foreign manager can never be successful in England", the Arsenal manager added.

In the current climate Wenger accepts that matters have been turned on their head, with English managers not often being given an opportunity at top clubs. And the Frenchman feels that they should focus on leading clubs from the Championship up to the Premier League to create their own chance at a higher level.

"Today you have many English managers who do not get a chance. But there are only 20 clubs and a good way to come up is to do a good job in the Championship. Maybe that's the advice you could give them", the Gunners boss added.

It remains to be seen whether Wenger will be succeeded by a foreign or British manager when he eventually calls time on his spell at Arsenal.

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