Emmanuel Eboue names the four ex-Gunners he thinks can go on to be ‘top coaches’ & lifts lid on first conversation with Wenger

In the third part of an exclusive interview with Ladbrokes: Fanzone, former Arsenal defender Emmanuel Eboue discusses some of his former teammates, playing for Arsene Wenger and Sven-Goran Eriksson plus the 2006 Champions League final.

In part one he talked about the current squad and his thoughts on next season, while in part two he recalled meeting the Queen at Buckingham Palace and being booed by Gunners fans at Wigan.

FOUR ex-teammates who could go on to become top managers

There are four teammates that come to my mind when I think about who could go on to become top managers. When I was at Arsenal, we had a team full of leaders, but the four who stood out to me were Kolo Toure, Jens Lehmann, Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva.

Kolo Toure, ever since I can remember him as a young boy, was our leader. ASEC Mimosas was our team as youngsters, and Kolo was always holding meetings with us. Whether he was on the pitch or not, he was talking to us all the time, motivating us, giving us instructions. Even when our coach was there, our teammates would listen to Kolo more than him. I think he can go on to be a great coach.

And then you’ve got Jens Lehmann. You know, I can admit now, I was a little scared of him. I saw that leadership quality in him from the very first day. I was scared of him at first. As a goalkeeper, he was fighting with us all the time, in training, in matches, telling us where we needed to be, who we needed to be marking, what we should be doing, what we shouldn’t be doing. I was scared of him; I was scared of making a mistake with him behind me. If we conceded a goal and I knew it was my fault, I knew I’d be getting it from Jens at some point. For me, I’m sure he’d make it as a top coach.

And when you talk about ultimate professionals and leaders, you have to mention Patrick Vieira. He was our big brother. He was everything you wanted from a captain, he’d constantly give you advice. I saw him as a brother, because he used to look out for me so much, telling me how to do this, how to do that. And we’ve seen already, he’s done well as a manager. He did well with Nice, I feel he did well with Crystal Palace – in the future, he’s going to be a very good manager.

As for Gilberto Silva, for me, I just love this guy. He was such a nice person to share a dressing room with – he’s one of the best people I’ve ever played with. But even off the pitch, if you ever have problems, he’s there. For myself, whenever I’ve had problems in my house, I always go to him. He’s a very quiet guy but he has so much good advice. I saw him as a coach, and I still think he’d be incredible in that role, if he wanted. We all had so much respect for him, he’s won everything, he’s a great guy. He’s very good at recognising how people are feeling; he helped me a lot when the Arsenal family booed me after that game against Wigan; he knows to get the best out of Emmanuel Eboue, he needs to be happy. For me, he’d be a really good coach.

Arsene Wenger’s first three words to me

When I think back to my first days at Arsenal, the first memory I have is of Highbury. When I grew up in my own country, I watched so many incredible players inside that stadium, on my TV, and I never imagined that I’d be one of them. And then all of a sudden I was here, in London, heading from the airport to Highbury. I was so happy; it’s a moment I’ll never forget.

And then, once I’d finished my visit to the stadium, I meet Arsene Wenger, who had the best three words for me…

“Are you ready?”

I said “ready for what?”

“Are you ready to play for Arsenal?”

Of course I was. I told him again and again that this was my dream, coming true. I was so happy to be there, to meet up with my teammates and give everything for my fans.

Everywhere I go, every team I’ve played for, I felt the fans loved me. Emmanuel Eboue; they know he’s the joker, he’s the guy who brings happiness to the team. I was so close to the Arsenal supporters, always laughing with them, so my relationship with them is great. I was always happy to speak with supporters and take pictures… they’re an unbelievable group of people.

Sven-Goran Eriksson is up there with the best I’ve played under

You know, I played under some incredible coaches; some great guys. Arsene Wenger and Robert Mancini would be up there, but so is Sven-Goran Eriksson. These guys liked me, because not only did I give everything for the team, but I always tried to bring happiness, too. That was the most important thing for me; a happy camp.

Eriksson, while I didn’t get to spend much time with him, was a great man to work for – we had a strong relationship. He had the ability to recognise not only when the team felt down, but to know I could help him.

“Emmanuel, I need you; when you talk, your teammates listen. Please, I need you to help me.”

I was very close to Eriksson during his time in charge of Ivory Coast. He was an outstanding coach, to be honest with you. He was very quiet, but he was always ready to listen to his players. Whenever you had a problem, you knew he’d be there to help you. I was very, very happy to learn from him.

When he came to Ivory Coast ahead of the 2010 World Cup, traditionally African sides suffered tactically, which is why we’ve always struggled at World Cups. But I really felt that Eriksson came in and changed that. He had a strong group of technical players, but he improved things tactically – I thought we were very, very good. I was so happy and proud to play for him, and I’ll always thank him for his time managing my country.

How Thierry Henry helped me improve at Arsenal

I’ve had the pleasure of playing with Thierry Henry and Didier Drogba, but it’s impossible to choose between them. They’re two of the best players we’ve ever seen in the Premier League. I had such a great understanding and relationship with Didier, both at Galatasaray, and for Ivory Coast.

And then Thierry helped me so much during my time at Arsenal. I think sometimes I was guilty of watching the game and not being as involved as I could have been when I first arrived. And sometimes when I got the ball, I don’t think I really knew what to do with it – so Thierry would stick around after training, just with me, and help me in that area – telling me what to do when I’m in the final third. I was so happy every time I shared the pitch with Thierry, and I’m proud to have assisted him with a few goals.

I know both men very well; both are so quick, so powerful, and so dangerous in front of goal. Ultimately, above everything, they both love scoring goals… I can’t compare the two. I can’t pick my favourite, I never would. I’m just glad I got to learn so much from both of them.

The one player I felt most for after 2006 Champions League final defeat

Your dream, as a young boy growing up in Africa, if you love football, is to play in the Champions League. I watched as many European games as I could when I was younger, so my objective was always to represent a team in the Champions League. Signing for Arsenal was a very proud moment in my life, but the main thing I was excited about was playing in the Champions League.

When we lost that final in 2006, I was very, very disappointed… not necessarily for the team, but for myself, and for my country. Myself and my ‘brother’, Kolo Toure, were the first Ivorian players to play in a European Cup final. I was sorry for my country, because so many people thought we were going to win that game.

We had such a good season in Europe – particularly from a defensive point of view, and then we lost 2-1 in the final to Barcelona. The player I felt most sorry for on that night was Robert Pires. Because of how that game went, he was substituted when Jens Lehmann got sent off. This was a massive occasion for Robert, in his own country, and Arsene Wenger brought him off to put Manuel Almunia in goal.

When we got into the dressing room, the first thing I did was watch Robert Pires. Of course, he was very, very sad. He’d brought his whole family to come and watch the game, to watch him in a Champions League final, and was brought off the game after 18 minutes because our goalkeeper got sent off.

When we lost that final, and were in the dressing room afterwards, I was looking around at my teammates, some huge characters in world football, Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Sol Campbell, Ashley Cole… they were nearly in tears, because this tournament meant everything to them… to all of us.

It’s frustrating because we lost the game to Barcelona. Nobody was talking in that dressing room; we were thinking about the game. How could we lose it? We were 100% sure it was going to be our night. But there can only be one winner, and on that occasion it wasn’t us. I still look back on the night positively, because I think back to my childhood, and fulfilling that dream.