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Arsene Wenger has revealed that Pep Guardiola paid him a house visit during his playing days in a bid to become Arsenal's latest midfield star.

The veteran Gunners boss told beIn Sports' Youtube channel about the time that the now Manchester City manager rocked up at his home in London to discuss a possible move to the Premier League side.

[youtube:https://youtu.be/jpn_LZFgghk]

Wenger and Guardiola will lock horns in the Carabao Cup semi-finals for the second leg encounter, with a place in the final of the cup tournament up for grabs.

And the Frenchman revealed that he could have ended up managing the ex-Barcelona player in the early 2000s before Guardiola hung up his playing boots to become a coach instead.

Wenger said: "I talked to him a few times, and once he came to my house when he was a player because he wanted to play for Arsenal."

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(You may also be interested in Revealed: The Reason Why Pep Guardiola Was So Incensed With Paul Cook During FA Cup Defeat)

Guardiola will be hoping to put Sunday's shock FA Cup exit at the hands of Wigan Athletic to bed by securing a victory over Arsenal to try and secure his first piece of silverware since joining City 18 months ago.

Guardiola is on course to lead the Citizens to a third Premier League title thanks to their seemingly insurmountable lead at the summit of England's top flight, and is still in the hunt for an unlikely treble due to City's participation in the Champions League.

If he managed to win all three trophies, Guardiola would take his medals haul to an impressive 24 triumphs and Wenger lauded his compatriot's managerial style for helping him to win so many trophies.

He added: "He's won much more than I did. I think he has done much better than I have, and he's knowing very well what to do. He has exceptional teams and he is managing them very well.

"I respect what he does because he has a clear vision of the game, he has a positive attitude, a positive philosophy.

"Even if he doesn't win I have as much respect as when he wins because I think the people who have an influence in the game, it's very important they have a positive attitude towards the game."