Reds co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett will be at Emirates stadium tonight and Benitez admitted: "It's always very important to have that support and backing. The long-term mission is the key if you want a style and a winning team.

"Wenger knows about the style and ideas he wants to put there and I think it's good. We are going in the same direction, but maybe we're a bit slower because we have to adjust more things.

"I don't know if he works under less pressure. But as a manager you must analyse things with calm. You cannot control what people are saying about trophies or things like this.

"You must try and say 'listen, this is our idea to go forward in the right direction' and try to keep doing the right things."

He also said: "If you don't have big, big money you need to prepare the foundations for the future. At this moment, Arsenal is the best model for us. If you start something, it depends on what players you have. Sometimes you need to go slowly."