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Arsene Wenger convinced he is 'the right man' for Arsenal job ahead of Tuesday's crucial board meeting

Arsene Wenger convinced he is 'the right man' for Arsenal job ahead of Tuesday's crucial board meeting

Arsene Wenger is convinced he remains the best man for the Arsenal job after his players gave an emphatic reminder of his qualities with their 2-1 win over Chelsea in the FA Cup Final.

Wenger won his seventh FA Cup, a record for an individual manager and as many as Chelsea have won in their history, in style as Arsenal outclassed the league champions from start to finish.

Aaron Ramsey was once more the hero in the FA Cup Final for Wenger, converting substitute Olivier Giroud’s cross moments after Diego Costa had cancelled out Alexis Sanchez’s controversial opener, which Antonio Conte insisted ought to have been disallowed for a handball.

Though Wenger was keen to celebrate “the proudest moment of his career” focus has already switched to a board meeting on Tuesday at which the manager’s future will be decided.

The win over Chelsea might have been the perfect way for Wenger to say goodbye after two decades at Arsenal were he so minded but he insisted he was not thinking about how to say farewell.

“There is no perfect way,” Wenger told Standard Sport. “I just want to do well for this club. It's down to the board members [to ask] am I the right man to lead this club further and for me to decide if I'm the right man.

“It’s not about popularity. It’s about competence.

“You cannot go 35 years at the top level if you do not think you are the right man to do the job.”

Though Wenger is expected to sign the new two year contract that has long been on offer from the Arsenal board there has been a growing distance between the manager and club chief executive Ivan Gazidis, who has spoken of a desire to be a “catalyst for change” after a season in which the Gunners finished fifth in the Premier League, missing out on Champions League qualification.

However majority shareholder Stan Kroenke, who flew in for the cup final and will remain in London for the meeting on Tuesday, remains a staunch supporter of Wenger.

Asked whether he knew how he expected the board meeting to play out on Tuesday Wenger only said he knew in his mind what he wanted.

“Let’s enjoy the win tonight and not worry about the future,” he added.

“For once I have kept my medal so that means it’s a special night for me. For the rest, we’ll see what happens in the future.

“If I’m still here next season I will have the same attitude.”