Arsene Wenger has been in charge of Arsenal for two decades now, and has faced some of the best managers and clubs during his time as manager. He endured heated clashes with Sir Alex Ferguson’s boys, and suffered tremendously against any Mourinho side, yet Le Prof chose a foreign team as the best he has ever faced.
Ahead of the Gunners’ clash with Manchester City in the English Premier League, a tie which will see him come up against Pep Guardiola, Wenger admitted that the Spaniard’s Barcelona side were his most difficult opponents in his career.
The north London outfit met the Blaugrana in back-to-back Champions League seasons in 2009-10 and 2010-11. Although Arsenal remained undefeated at home in both encounters – drawing 2-2 and then winning 2-1 the next year – they were dumped out of the competition at the hands of the Catalan giants.
When asked whether that was the best team he has ever faced, the long-serving Frenchman said (as per ESPN FC): "Yes. I played a semifinal against Milan with Monaco in the Champions League [in 1994]. They were good as well.
"But with Arsenal we faced maybe Barcelona at its peak -- at the time when Xavi was still young enough, Andres Iniesta was coming up, Dani Alves was still young. They were the best team I have played.
"They were all hungry, young. Lionel Messi was 20, 21, 22. They were all coming up with a huge hunger and desire. It was natural for them.
"Let's not forget they had some team there. They had [Samuel] Eto'o and [Thierry] Henry and [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic and Messi. Imagine what that was like. Ibrahimovic still scores goals today."
On Sunday, Wenger’s boys will travel to Man City for a crucial tie. The hosts are only a point behind the Gunners, but the Citizens are struggling with form as of late.
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