Wenger cut off Welbeck transfer talks to meet the Pope while trying to get striker to Arsenal

Arsene Wenger has revealed that he once cut off transfer talks with Danny Welbeck during his time at Arsenal in order to meet the Pope.

Back in the summer of 2014, with a recruitment deadline fast approaching, Manchester United opened themselves up for discussions regarding the England international forward.

The Red Devils were willing to part with Welbeck as he faced fierce competition for places at Old Trafford.

Tottenham were first to make a move, but were soon joined in a late scramble for a much sought-after signature by their arch-rivals from across north London.

Wenger was leading that chase on behalf of Arsenal, but the Gunners boss was otherwise engaged when it came to trying to get a deal over the line.

Explaining a remarkable saga to The Athletic, the iconic French coach said: “Danny Welbeck - when I went to the Match For Peace, I arrived at the airport and was told he’s come down to sign for Tottenham. I managed to intercept him.

“In fact, it was a funny story because I was negotiating the whole day. We had Ivan [Gazidis] and Dick Law to negotiate and they called me up. I had the agent on the phone and I told him, ‘Look, I have to hang up because I’m in front of the Pope!’

“He said to me: ‘What?!’

“I said, ‘Yes’. Because we were queuing up to take a photo with the Pope in a private audience. I was at the back of the queue because I had to talk and negotiate and at some stage I arrived in front of the Pope. So, I had to say, ‘Look, that’s not possible anymore because I have to meet the Pope now’.”

Arsenal eventually won the race for Welbeck and he would go on to spend five years at Emirates Stadium.

Wenger did, however, snub other options during the same summer, with the opportunity to re-sign Cesc Fabregas from Barcelona passed up as the former Gunners captain ended up making his way to Chelsea.

“It was general guidance for me to make the players realise that if you leave here, you don’t come back,” Wenger said of a Spain international that he nurtured into a first-team star but was forced to offload in 2011.

“It was a way to retain the players who wanted to see if the grass was greener elsewhere.

“I did it for Thierry Henry, Sol Campbell, Jens Lehmann but they were different. The young players who left I didn’t like to do it.”