Patrick Vieira’s significant contribution to Arsenal was not enough to earn him a post-retirement return to the club he served with such distinction for nine years and one he had hoped to finish his career at.
‘I’ve never been contacted by anyone to manage or get involved with the club,’ Vieira once said. ‘I was expecting something from them, but it didn’t come.’
But it has helped him gain a respect that has provided the foundation for the managerial career he has built elsewhere – at New York City FC, Nice and now Crystal Palace, achieving one of his big aims to manage in the Premier League in the process.
Patrick Vieira has adjusted well to his first role as a manager of a Premier League club
After spells at New York City and then Nice back in his native France, he is now Palace boss
Vieira conquered England with Arsenal and Europe and the world with France being integral to club and country and captaining both.
‘When I hired him in 1996, I thought it was possible he might become a great player,’ Arsene Wenger said in the autobiography of his 2004 Invincibles captain Vieira who remains in touch with a number of his teammates from that unforgettable side.
‘By the time he left [for Juventus in 2005] he had become one of the greatest players in the club’s history.’
‘When he walks in the dressing room, all of his background comes with him,’ Vieira’s former Nice CEO Gauthier Ganaye told Sportsmail. ‘He is a piece of history.’
Eagles attacking midfielder Ebere Eze said: ‘The first time I walked in and saw him, I felt something inside me that made me sit up. I was thinking: ‘This isn’t supposed to happen. He’s a human being just like me!’ I don’t think I’ve had that speaking to anybody. But there’s a presence about him.’
The instant respect Vieira commands, and which is referenced by many, has given the 45 year-old a platform to build on during his early weeks at Palace.
The former Arsenal captain is set to return to his old club for the first…
Source : dailymail
