Arsene Wenger will leave Arsenal at the end of the season, bringing an end to a remarkable spell in charge stretching back to October 1996.
Nicknamed Le Professeur in his early months on British shores, Wenger has certainly taught the Premier League a thing or two in an admirable stint that has given Gunners fans plenty of highs, lows and a long wait for a trophy.
The longest-serving manager in the club s history, and only second in longevity to Alex Ferguson in England s top flight, the 68-year-old has witnessed significant change in both football and the wider world during his time in north London.
Here, Omnisport looks at what things were like when Wenger took over in 1996. How times have changed
IN FOOTBALL
Manchester United were the reigning Premier League champions (their 10th top-flight title).
Alan Shearer, top scorer in the division with 31 goals the previous season, had just joined Newcastle United from Blackburn Rovers for a world-record £15million fee.
Arsenal were third in the table on October 1, with 17 points from eight matches, three off the league leaders Roy Evans Liverpool. Tottenham were 14th in the top flight.
Manchester City, champions for 2017-18, were competing in the second tier and had just sacked manager Alan Ball.
Juventus were kings of Europe, having beaten Ajax on penalties in the Champions League final in Rome. Current Chelsea boss Antonio Conte started the match.
VIDEO: Who recalls Ravanelli s all-important strike in the 1996 final against Ajax?
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen)
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho had just joined Barcelona as Bobby Robson s assistant. Pep Guardiola was in that team. Jurgen Klopp was playing for Mainz.
Germany had triumphed at Euro 96, beating Czech Republic in the final at Wembley. Gareth Southgate, now England manager, missed the crucial penalty in the host nation s semi-final defeat.
Joao Havelange was FIFA president, with Sepp Blatter his general secretary. Lennart Johansson ran UEFA.
Ronaldo was soon to be named the youngest winner of the FIFA World Player of the Year award. The Ballon d Or would go to Matthias Sammer.
Major League Soccer was only six months old.
Arsenal club captain Per Mertesacker was 12. Joe Willock, who made his Premier League debut under Wenger this season, was not yet born.
A touching tribute by
— Arsenal FC (@Arsenal)
Eddie Howe, who will be the Premier League s longest-serving active manager once Wenger leaves, was an 18-year-old fresh from making five appearances for Bournemouth in his debut season in the Second Division.
David Beckham hadn t met Victoria.
IN SPORT
Donovan Bailey held the 100 metres world record (9.84 seconds); Michael Johnson held a 200m record of 19.32s. Both were set at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where Carl Lewis won his fourth and final long jump gold at the age of 35.
Andre Agassi was the Olympic men s tennis champion, but Pete Sampras was top of the ATP world rankings. Current men s world number one Rafael Nadal was a 10-year-old still considering a career in football.
Damon Hill became the first son of a Formula One world champion to win his own drivers title, beating Williams team-mate Jacques Villeneuve into second.
ON THIS DAY: Damon Hill won in Brazil in 1996, a key early season victory in his charge to the world title that year
— Formula 1 (@F1)
Frankie Dettori completed the Magnificent Seven as he became the first jockey to win all seven races on his card at Ascot, including the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes. The odds on Dettori winning all seven races was 25,051-1.
Michael Jordan had been named MVP as Chicago Bulls won the 50th NBA Finals, beating Seattle SuperSonics 4-2 in the series.
Sri Lanka were world cricket champions, having beaten Australia in the final in Pakistan.
Tiger Woods had been a professional golfer for two months.
ELSEWHERE
Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales divorced in August.
Nintendo 64 had recently been released in Japan.
The New Labour manifesto under leader Tony Blair was launched it would pave the way for his 1999 election as British Prime Minister.
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