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Wenger encountered all manner of possible opponents in his epic stint in charge of the Gunners, which ran from 1996 to 2018 and saw the Frenchman win three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups.
However, it wasn’t his closest domestic rivals Manchester United and Chelsea, or his Champions League rivals like Barcelona and Bayern Munich that Wenger remembers as his toughest opponents.
Instead, it was the notorious side of Wimbledon from the ’90s that comes to mind at age 70.
When asked who his toughest opponents were with Arsenal, Wenger told the BBC: ‘Wimbledon when I first came to England’
Wenger fought the Crazy Gang in his first season in charge of Arsenal, drawing and losing at home to rivals in London.
Vinnie Jones, who epitomized the intense physical nature of the Wimbledon team at the time, scored in both games when the team led by Joe Kinnear finished eighth in the Premier League.
Wenger learned how to deal with the Crazy Gang, winning four, drawing one and losing one of his six remaining matches with them in the Premier League before WImbledon descended in 2000.
Wimbledon could have proven to be a real thorn in Wenger’s side, as Arsenal were on their way to a third straight defeat against them in December 1997.
The Gunners were struggling with four losses in their last six games and were reeling in sixth place on the table when they were scoreless with Crazy Gang in the second half.
There was a fault in the reflector, causing the game to be abandoned, and Arsenal were then undefeated in 18 games, including Wenger’s first win over Wimbledon when they won the Premier League title.
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