Arsene Wenger ended his Arsenal reign with a win at Huddersfield on an emotionally-charged afternoon at the John Smith’s Stadium.
The 68-year-old took charge of his last game in charge of the Gunners as his side recorded a 1-0 victory courtesy of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s first-half goal.
Wenger, whose tenure lasted almost 22 years and took in 1,235 games, was given a rousing reception by both sets of fans in a carnival atmosphere.
Arsenal and Huddersfield fans alike saluted the Frenchman as he walked over to acknowledge the away end before the match, bowing in front of the travelling supporters.
Huddersfield boss David Wagner made a special presentation on behalf of the West Yorkshire club in the tunnel before kick-off, with the players forming a guard of honour as Wenger emerged onto the pitch one last time.
Two planes flew over the John Smith’s Stadium, carrying messages of support for Wenger.
“Merci Arsene, we will miss you too,” one read in response to Wenger’s goodbye speech last week, while the other read: “One Arsene Wenger”.
Then, after 22 minutes, the entire stadium rose as one to applaud Wenger – marking the length of his reign – with chants of “there’s only one Arsene Wenger” also springing up throughout pockets of the home support as well as the entire away end.
The Frenchman stood up in his technical area to wave back to those who were showing their respects to his achievements.
The game itself was fairly forgettable, Aaron Mooy hitting the crossbar late on as the Terriers came close to denying Wenger a winning finale.
He was unable to offer one final wave to the Arsenal fans because of a pitch invasion, with Huddersfield fans celebrating their top-flight survival which was secured following a midweek draw at Chelsea.