SELLEY'S GOT THE WAYS OF WENGER

THE LAST thing Ian Selley would have expected when he played under Arsene Wenger was to be modelling training sessions at Chertsey Town on the methods of the Arsenal legend almost 24 years later.

- David Richardson

Selley, 45, played 42 times for the Gunners in the topflight after making his debut at just 18 in 1992.

He was part of the squad that won the FA Cup, League Cup, and UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup under George Graham and then witnessed Wenger begin his famous 22-year reign.

Selley has been the first-team coach at Chertsey in the Isthmian South Central since January, which coincided with a nine-game unbeaten run to force them into the playoff picture before the season was ended.

Tempo

He admits a coaching or managerial career wasn’t the first thing on his list after retirement, but is now loving the role more than ever.

“When Arsene came in everything he did was shorter but it was high tempo,” Selley told The NLP. “We were always training at our maximum and that translated onto the pitch. The sessions we do at Chertsey are very similar to that. If you’ve got that ethos and it’s enjoyable, after a short period of time players develop, and all of a sudden the team is moving forward. I get just as much enjoyment now in delivering a session as I did playing.”