Arsène Wenger, (born 22 October 1949 in Strasbourg) is a French football manager who managed Arsenal from 1996 to 2018. As a player he made a few appearances for RC Strasbourg before joining AS Cannes as assistant manager in 1983.  His managerial career took off when he became the manager of AS Monaco in 1987. He won the league in 1988 (his first season in charge) and the French Cup in 1991.  He moved on to a successful 18-month stint with the Japanese J. League team Nagoya Grampus Eight, with whom he won the Emperor's Cup, the national cup competition. He also took the club from the bottom three to runners-up position in the league. Wenger had in the meantime become a friend of the then Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein, after the two had met when Wenger attended a match between Arsenal and Queens Park Rangers in 1988. After Bruce Rioch was sacked in August 1996, Gérard Houllier, the then technical director of the French Football Federation, recommended Wenger to David Dein in the summer of 1996. Arsenal confirmed his appointment on 28 September 1996, and he officially took up the reins on 1 October. Wenger was a relative unknown in England, where The Evening Standard newspaper greeted his nomination with the headline 'Arsene Who?'.  He is the most successful manager in the history of Arsenal in terms of trophies. He has won the Double with Arsenal twice in 1998 and 2002. In 2004, he became the only manager in FA Premier League history to go through the entire season without defeat.  Wenger revolutionised scouting, training and diet which prolonged the careers of many of his players. His attacking style made his Arsenal teams entertaining and aggressive in style.  By 2018 when he left the club, he was the longest serving manager in Arsenal’s history.