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Sir Alex Ferguson & Arsene Wenger welcomed into the Premier League Hall of Fame.
The Premier League Hall of Fame has officially honoured Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger as its inaugural managers.
The duo won 16 Premier League titles between them across respective long-term spells with Manchester United and Arsenal.
Ferguson is the most accomplished manager in the competition’s history with 13 of their championships. He is the first manager to have achieved the Premier League’s Triple Title on two separate occasions.
Ferguson said: “I’m truly delighted to be inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame. It’s an honour when you receive recognition like this. However, it’s not just about me as a person. It’s about the job at Manchester United and the bond we had over many years, so I’m also proud for the club, the staff and my players.
“My job was to send the fans home happy. United’s history and my own expectations were the things that drove me, and I then had to try and develop all my players with the same expectations and make sure we could go out and achieve them.
“I feel Arsene is a very worthy inductee as he transformed Arsenal Football Club fantastically. They became a tough team to compete with and we both wanted to win, which motivated us further. Through the years since retirement, we’d go for dinner together in a little restaurant he knows well in Switzerland. He is a really interesting man and I enjoy his company, but it is still my job to pick the wine!”
👑 The greatest.
Sir Alex Ferguson has been inducted in the @PremierLeague Hall of Fame 👏#MUFC || #PL
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) March 29, 2023
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Wenger arrived in England as one of the Premier League’s first foreign coaches in 1996, swiftly proving sceptics wrong by converting Arsenal into title winners and influencing the culture of English football with his scouting and culinary skills.
At Arsenal, he won three Premier League titles, including an unbeaten ‘Invincibles season in 2003/04.
Wenger said: “I am very grateful to have been selected for the Premier League Hall of Fame. We always wanted to give something special to the fans and when you have players capable of remarkable things, the most important thing for me is the obligation of perfection.
“I’d like to be known as someone who loved Arsenal, who respected the values of the club and left it in a position where it can grow and become even bigger.
“To share this with Sir Alex is a great honour for me. It’s like two boxers, you fight like mad and go the distance together. At the end of the day, you have respect and it will be a great opportunity to meet with him, share a good bottle of wine and memories of our old battles.”
🥁 Our latest inductee to the Premier League Hall of Fame…
It’s a special entry, Gooners 🙌
🏆 One gold trophy
❤️ One Arsene Wenger pic.twitter.com/iNsBbe1A9t— Arsenal (@Arsenal) March 29, 2023
In addition to Ferguson and Wenger, there are 16 other inductees in the Premier League Hall of Fame.
When the Hall of Fame was established in 2021, Alan Shearer and Thierry Henry were the first two individuals to be inducted. During that year, they were followed by David Beckham, Eric Cantona, Roy Keane, Frank Lampard, Dennis Bergkamp, and Steven Gerrard.
Inductees for 2022 were Ian Wright, Peter Schmeichel, Paul Scholes, Didier Drogba, Vincent Kompany, Patrick Vieira, and Sergio Aguero.