On Friday morning, Arsène Wenger announced he would be leaving the club at the end of the 2017/18 season.

We caught up with club captain Per Mertesacker for his reaction to the news. Scroll down to read what he said:

on Wenger’s announcement…

We have just been informed basically. It is quite emotional. Obviously he has been at the club for such a long time, he has been so supportive to me. One major reason why I’m here is because of him. It’s been emotional and there will be time to digest it but it is a sad feeling right now.

on what it’s been like to work with him…

He’s been the major figure for this club for over 20 years. He’s been so impressive for me and he’s trusted me so much throughout my career, in bringing me here, giving me the opportunity to play here and making me captain even when I was injured. He also gave me a future role here at the club, so I’m very grateful and humbled for the opportunity he gave to me. It is a sad day for me but we’re also moving forward for the future. It’s in Arsène’s interest as well that this club will give positive memories to the fans and the people.

on what he’s learnt from him…

A lot on the pitch but also his quality of being calm in the right moments, giving people trust and empowering people to explore themselves. There have been a lot of challenges, a lot of highs and lows, but how he went through tough times has taught me a lot about his character and about how to trust people and get the people in the right places to be successful. He gave us the opportunity to explore ourselves in order to be successful, and he’s always managed to get the team around himself to be successful. The memories of winning titles with him and bringing joy to so many people - something he has done for years - is a heck of an achievement.