ARSENAL left their soul in Highbury when they left the stadium in 2006, claimed Arsene Wenger.
The legendary Gunners boss insisted the move to the Emirates changed the club from a family business to a big company.
Wenger, 70, was in charge when Arsenal decided to leave the place they had called home since 1913.
The Frenchman admitted it was a move the club had to make, but the club have struggled to create the same atmosphere.
He told beIN Sports: “You are always in a position when you are a football club to move forward or stay in the past.
“To compete with other clubs, we had to build a new stadium. The rules had changed.
“We wanted to create the same as Highbury but we left our soul at Highbury.
“We could never recreate exactly. We didn’t find exactly the same atmosphere.”
Wenger – who left the club in 2018 – claimed one issue with the new ground is that the fans are further away from the pitch.
He added: “For me, Highbury is linked with love.
“Love for the period I had, the exceptional attitude of fans, the exceptional football games I witnessed there.
“It’s a special place in my heart.
“At the time, we were 40 people there, maximum. Today we are 600. We knew everybody.
“We have moved from a business family to a big company now.
“You sit on the touchline. The supporters are very close to the touchline.
“When you kick a corner you can shake the hand of the first support. That makes you all together on the pitch.
“That togetherness, that warm feeling that you get at Liverpool today, or Everton – that’s what you miss.”
Wenger has admitted he still worries about his beloved Arsenal – and hopes Mikel Arteta can rediscover the club’s culture.
