Arsene Wenger has announced that he will leave Arsenal at the end of the season, ending his 22-year career as the current longest-serving manager in the Premier League.

In what was a shock announcement on Friday morning ahead of this weekend’s Premier League clash with West Ham, Wenger confirmed that he will leave the club.

“After careful consideration and following discussions with the club, I feel it is the right time for me to step down at the end of the season,” Wenger said in a statement.

Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager Show all 15 1 /15 Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 1996 – Becomes Arsenal Manager Wenger leaves Japanese side Grampus Eight to become the Arsenal Manager. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 1998 – Wins League and FA Cup double Arsenal win the league setting a new club record of 10 consecutive wins and also secure FA Cup glory beating Newcastle 2-0 in the final. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 1999 - Charity Shield victory over Manchester United Arsene Wenger lifts the charity shield in 1999 after Arsenal beat Manchester United 2-1 at Wembley Stadium. The first of many highly contested games Sir Alex Ferguson's side. Getty Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 1999 – Signs Thierry Henry from Juventus Arsenal signed Thierry Henry from Serie A side Juventus for £11 million. Henry went on to become the club’s all-time top goalscorer with 228 goals in 377 appearances. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2002 – Second League and FA Cup double The Frenchman wins his second double with Arsenal tipping Manchester United and Liverpool to top spot in the league and defeating Chelsea 2-0 in the FA Cup final. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2002 - Community Shield added to double Arsenal add the Community Shield to their Premier League trophy and FA Cup double. Getty Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2003 - OBE from the Queen and FA Cup victory Wenger’s men beat Southampton 1-0 at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium and in the same year he given an honouree OBE by the Queen. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2004 – The ‘Invincibles’ In 2004, Arsenal were at the peak of their powers under Wenger. His philosophy of possession-based free-flowing football, combined with the talent of players such as Henry and Dennis Bergkamp, led Wenger’s men to the league title and an unbeaten 49 game streak. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2005 – FA Cup victory against Manchester United Arsenal beat Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United 5-4 on penalties for Wenger’s fourth FA Cup trophy. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2006 – Champions League final v Barcelona Wenger’s team came the closest they have ever been to European glory, narrowly losing 2-1 to Barcelona, after going a goal up through Sol Campbell in the first-half. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2014 - FA Cup victory against Hull City Having not won a piece of silverware in nine years, the pressure was certainly on for Wenger as Arsenal took on Hull City at Wembley. It only got worse for Wenger as Hull took a 2-0 lead in the opening 10 minutes. However, his team managed to fight their way back into the game and sealed victory with a dramatic 3-2 comeback in extra-time. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2014 - Another Community Shield in the bag Arsene Wenger watches his Arsenal players celebrate with the Community Shield after they beat Manchester City 3-0 at Wembley Stadium. Getty Images Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2015 – FA Cup winners against Aston Villa After the drama of the previous year’s final against Hull, Wenger’s side cruised to a 4-0 victory over Aston Villa in front of a packed Wembley crowd. Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2017 - The FA Cup master Having faced called for his head all season from his own fans, Wenger ended the year with his hand around that familiar trophy yet again for a record seventh time - more than any other manager. Getty Arsene Wenger's best moments as Arsenal manager 2017 - The last of his Community Shields Arsene Wenger holds the Community Shield aloft alongside Petr Cech as they celebrate their victory over Chelsea. Arsenal also beat the Blues in the 2015 Community Shield. This would be the last of Wenger's seven community shields. AFP/Getty

“I am grateful for having had the privilege to serve the club for so many memorable years.

“I managed the club with full commitment and integrity.

“I want to thank the staff, the players, the Directors and the fans who make this club so special.

“I urge our fans to stand behind the team to finish on a high. To all the Arsenal lovers take care of the values of the club.

"My love and support for ever.”

Arsenal’s majority shareholder, Stan Kroenke, paid tribute to Wenger and hailed his influence on the club, with the American billionaire admitting that he hopes to build on the Frenchman’s legacy.

Wenger won three Premier League titles with Arsenal (Getty)

“This is one of the most difficult days we have ever had in all our years in sport,” Kroenke said. “One of the main reasons we got involved with Arsenal was because of what Arsène has brought to the club on and off the pitch. His longevity and consistency over such a sustained period at the highest level of the game will never be matched.

“Arsène has unparalleled class and we will always be grateful to him. Everyone who loves Arsenal and everyone who loves football owes him a debt of gratitude. Three Premier League titles, including an entire season unbeaten, seven FA Cup triumphs and 20 successive years in the Champions League is an exceptional record. He has also transformed the identity of our club and of English football with his vision for how the game can be played.

“We have high ambitions to build on Arsène’s remarkable tenure and to honour his vision by ensuring that Arsenal competes for and wins the biggest and most important prizes in the game.

“We must now focus on making a strong finish to the season and ask our millions of fans around the world to join us in paying appropriate tribute to one of the greats of Arsenal’s history and one of the greats of the game.”

Wenger will leave Arsenal at the end of the season (Getty)

The club also announced that they will “make an appointment as soon as possible”, but will not speak on the matter until that time comes.

The timing of the announcement immediately raised eyebrows, with Wenger holding his weekly press conference on Thursday without making any reference towards his imminent departure.

It also comes just six days before what could be Arsenal’s biggest game of the season, with the Gunners due to face Atletico Madrid in the Europa League semi-final first leg. With Arsenal currently on course to miss out on the top four – falling 14 points behind fourth-placed Tottenham with 15 points left to play for – winning the Europa League looks to be Arsenal’s only hope of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

That’s why the announcement, which comes a month before the Europa League final and the end of the Premier League campaign, could be a deliberate attempt from Wenger to try and end the fan protests against him and the players and unify the club in the hope of a successful end to his tenure.

Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Show all 11 1 /11 Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Joachim Löw Age: 58

Current club: German national team

Honours: Austrian Bundesliga, 2001/02

Fifa World Cup, 2014

Fifa Confederations Cup, 2017 Getty Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Mikel Arteta Age: 35

Current club: Manchester City Getty Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Brendan Rodgers Age: 44

Current club: Celtic

Honours: Championship playoffs

Scottish League Cup

Scottish Premiership Getty Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Leonardo Jardim Age: 42

Current club: Monaco

Honours: Segunda Liga

Superleague Greece

Greek Cup

Ligue 1 Getty Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Patrick Vieira Age: 40

Current club: New York City FC

Honours: None Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Diego Simeone Age: 47

Current club: Atletico Madrid

Honours: Argentine Primera Division x2 (Estudiantes de La Plata and River Plate)

La Liga

Copa del Rey

Spanish Supercup

Europa League

Uefa Super Cup Getty Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Domenico Tedesco Age: 32

Current club: Schalke Bongarts/Getty Images Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Massimiliano Allegri Age: 49

Current club: Juventus

Honours: Serie C1 (Sassuolo)

Serie A x3 (AC Milan, 2x Juventus)

Italian Super Cup x 2 (AC Milan, Juventus)

Coppa Italia x 2 (Juventus) Getty Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Thomas Tuchel Age: 44

Current club: Free agent

Honours: DFB-Pokal Getty Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Luis Enrique Age: 47

Current club: Free agent

Honours: La Liga x2 Copa del Rey x3 Supercopa de Espana Champions League Super Cup Club World Cup Getty Arsenal candidates to replace Arsene Wenger Carlo Ancelotti Age: 58

Current club: Free agent Intertoto Cup (Juventus) Serie A (AC Milan) Coppa Italia (Ac Milan) Supercoppa Italiana (AC Milan) Champions League x3 (AC Milan x2, Real Madrid) Super Cup x2 (AC Milan) Club World Cup (AC Milan) Premier League (Chelsea) FA Cup (Chelsea) Ligue 1 (Paris Saint-Germain) Copa del Rey (Real Madrid) Bundesliga (Bayern Munich) DFL Supercup x2 (Bayern Munich) Bongarts/Getty Images

Wenger arrived at Arsenal in 1996 to replace the sacked Bruce Rioch, and is widely regarded as a revolutionary figure in British football as he introduced new training ideas, dietary requirements and a style of football that captured the imagination of fans across the globe – and not just of Arsenal.

He won three Premier League titles while at the helm of the north London club, the last of which came as a result of the unbeaten 'Invincibles' season in 2003/04. He will also leave the club as the most successful manager in history in the FA Cup, with the former Monaco boss winning the prestigious trophy no fewer than seven times – the most recent of which came last season as the third success in four years.

The Arsenal manager is the longest-serving coach in the Premier League (AFP/Getty) (Getty)

But despite the return of silverware to the club after nine trophy-less seasons, protests against Wenger’s reign started to emerge among supporters who felt that change was needed at the club. Despite this, Wenger signed a new two-year contract last summer, but this year’s failure in the Premier League has seen the manager himself decide that the time is right to leave.