Pep Guardiola could have been at Arsenal if not for Wenger

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is said to have blocked a proposed move for Pep Guardiola during the previous campaign.

The Gunners' hierarchy were keen to replace Wenger with Pep last summer and had even planned to hold pre-contract negotiations upon the Spaniard's decision to leave Bayern Munich, Metro reports.

However, Wenger is understood to have ignored the club's request as he felt that he had more to offer to the club in what is the final of his three-year contract - signed in 2014.

Pep eventually inked a three-year deal with rivals Manchester City, who are third in the Premier League, six points ahead of the north London club.

The club's faithful have now called for a change in management at the end of the campaign, but it appears that board could stick with Wenger for a couple of years with reports emerging that he has verbally agreed terms over a two-year contract.

Arsenal are currently two points outside of the top-four positions, and they face a tough task of qualifying for next season's Champions League unless they go through their annual good form in the back end of the campaign.