Emmanuel Petit urges caution after Thierry Henry tipped to REPLACE Arsene Wenger

The former Gunners midfield star believes that Wenger is unlikely to step aside at the end of the season.

And even if the Frenchman does call time on 19 years at the helm, Petit believes his influence will still be strongly felt at the Emirates.

Henry's retirement from playing last year has seen him touted as a possible successor to Wenger, but Petit says there is still plenty of water to go under the bridge before the Gunners go down that route.

He told RMC Sport: "It's way too early to tell [if Henry can succeed Wenger]. We live in a society where fast food is consumed very quickly and we also quickly discard what was consumed. For Henry, as with Zidane, he needs time.

"You do not become a coach just because you pass your degrees. It's like when you become a parent. One becomes a function of his children, we adapt, we learn about ourselves. So getting the degree is one thing. Become a coach week after week, that's something else."

Asked whether Wenger might retire at the end of the current campaign, Petit added: "No, I do not think so. The future of Arsene is really related to Arsenal. Even if tomorrow he is no longer the coach, he will always be involved.

"He will always pull some strings at the club. Because he is a visionary. He is an extremely important dimension at the shareholder level. But for several years, fans are starting to rumble because they want titles.

"They want to fight in the Premier League and Champions League. It is true that it is a disappointment year after year. The difficult choice for Arsene is to see whether to continue to please shareholders by qualifying for the Champions League  or to try to make a competitive team to play for the top titles."