Vito Mannone is currently on loan at Major League Soccer side Minnesota United from Reading, but prior to that, he spent more than a decade in England.
The goalkeeper first arrived in the country when Arsenal signed him for their academy in 2005.
Calciomercato had an opportunity to sit down for an interview with the 31-year-old and he explained how a move to the north London club materialised.
“Three months after my father passed away, they offered me a trial with the first team. I like to think that it came from the sky. The trial went well, they made me sign the contract and they thought about my mother too, who moved in with me,” he said.
When asked what kind of a person Wenger was, he said: “A particular type. A great coach, but as a man too cold. He rarely spoke.”
Mannone had a short spell on loan at Barnsley in 2006, but then he struggled for minutes under Wenger’s guidance. He was battling with Łukasz Fabiański and Wojciech Szczęsny for a place in the starting XI.
The stopper then had two loan spells at Hull City between 2010 and 2012 before leaving Arsenal for Sunderland in 2013. He claims he never had the trust of Wenger, when he was with the Gunners.
“I wanted more chances to play in the starting lineup, but the relationship with Wenger was not the best and he never bet on me,” Mannone explained.
“I was battling with Szczesny and Fabianski, but we didn’t have the same opportunities. When I returned to the Emirates with Sunderland, Wenger apologised for not believing in me.”
