Arsene Wenger has described Jose Mourinho as a 'kindergarten' child after the Portuguese boss taunted the former Arsenal boss about not mentioning him in his book.
The two managers had a toxic rivalry in the Premier League between 2004 and 2018, but the former Arsenal manager did not mention Mourinho in his autobiography, 'My Life in Red and White', which was released this month.
Mourinho, who now manages Arsenal's fierce rivals Tottenham, claimed this week that Wenger didn't dare mention him in his book as 'he never beat me', but the Frenchman has hit back at those claims by branding the Spurs coach as childish.
Wenger told Canal+ on Sunday: 'It doesn't bother me. It is permanent provocation. I feel like I'm in kindergarten with him. But, that's part of his personality.
'It's wrong, we beat him twice. We won, and there were also a lot of draws. And it is not 'you' who wins, you only participate in the victory.
'It is "us" who win. The manager is there to get the most out of a team.'
Mourinho and Wenger faced off 19 times in total, with the former Arsenal man actually winning two times against the now-Spurs boss, contrary to the Portuguese coach's claims.
Wenger had to wait 11 years to taste his first victory over Mourinho, as his Arsenal side defeated Chelsea in the 2015 Community Shield at Wembley thanks to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's winner.
The ex-Arsenal coach's only Premier League victory over Mourinho came in 2017 as goals from Granit Xhaka and Danny Welbeck saw the Gunners beat Mourinho's Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium.
Mourinho was adamant that Wenger had never landed a punch on him, despite the damning evidence against him.
Mourinho told the press ahead of Spurs' 3-3 draw with West Ham: 'You are not going to do a chapter about 12 or 14 matches when you never win one. Why should he speak about me in his book?
'A book is a thing to make you happy and make you proud so I understand perfectly the situation.'
Wenger and Mourinho's rivalry began in 2004 as Chelsea snatched the title away from Arsenal in the Portuguese coach's first season in England.
However, despite the long-standing feud with Mourinho, Wenger admitted on The Graham Norton Show that Sir Alex Ferguson was his biggest rival in football.
Wenger and Mourinho spoke about each other in the press over the years, but their only public feud came when the Frenchman pushed the then-Chelsea coach on the touchline during a Premier League game in 2014.
Adedeji_blue
488
What is Mourinho's problem about another man's book? your relationship with Wenger is toxic and you want him to embrace you in his book just like that? This is his biography he can write anything he likes whether including your name or not it's non of your business you did the same when man city released their own book too stop acting like a lunatic Mourinho, you stabbed people at the back during your times together on the pitch and you want them to embrace you easily after they left like seriously? If you like you can paint everywhere red in your own book when you write it since you have problems with everything that happens on the pitch. Team Doctors, coaching staffs, ball boys, referees, linesman, coaches, fans, pundits, journalists even the players you trained by yourself nobody cares.. get some maturity man be a man of peace you are getting old.
dennisachafu
326
Just trust the media. This is what they're good at. Always trying to resurrect issues and bring back a healed wound. I know the same media will go to Mourhino and ask him what he thinks about Wenger branding him like someone in kindergarten at his age. I bet you that this feud will never end because Mourinho must have something to say. For the sake of fair play, I think both managers have paid their dues and we must respect them for their contributions in different clubs. I still read comments from fans of both managers abusing them and their supporters. This is uncalled for because the rivalry is supposed to be for fun and not for insults.