PHOTO: Arsene Wenger in revealing magazine interview, fashion shoot

While it's necessary to bundle up for the horizontal rains that whip across England, Wenger's decision to wear a coat that resembles a sleeping bag has been questioned by everyone from fashion writers to supporters in chicken balti pie-stained jerseys.

(Courtesy: nytimes.com)

It is something of a surprise then, when Arsenal's veteran gaffer crops up in the L'Equipe's Sport & Style special donning some rather stylish threads while participating in a revealing interview with the French daily.

(Courtesy: sportetstyle.fr)

But the three-time Premier League winner wasn't just straightening a tie in a lavish bathroom of the Hotel Belles Rives, he also spoke philosophically on how he approaches coaching aged 66.

Here are some pictures, accompanied by quotes translated by the Guardian:

On whether he has "mystical powers": "Religiously, it is said that God created man. I am only a guide. I allow others to express what they have in them. I have not created anything. I am a facilitator of what is beautiful in man."

"I define myself as an optimist. My constant battle in this business is to get out there what is beautiful in man. We can at this level portray me as naive. At the same time, it allows me to believe it and it often gives me reason."

On sporting a fancy jacket for the photoshoot: "It reminds me of when I went to school in Duttlenheim (France)."

"I still live in the future. It is planned. Tight. My relationship with time is quite scary. I'm still trying to fight it. I'm always afraid of being late. Not to be ready. Not being able to accomplish all that I planned. My personal relationship with time is scary. To go back in time, to look behind yourself is equally staggering."

"The only moment of possible happiness, is the present. The past gives regrets. And future uncertainties. Man quickly realised this and created the religion. It forgives him what he has done wrong in the past and tells him not to worry about the future, as you will go to paradise."

- With h/t to dreamteamfc