Avram's friendly fire for Gunners

If the Portuguese had been taking Chelsea to Emirates Stadium on Sunday the pair would have been embroiled in some unseemly sniping by now.

Their bitter relationship and sometimes childish antics got so out of hand the FA, Premier League and League Managers Association called for calm.

But if Grant sends a Christmas card to Wenger this year it is bound to be acknowledged and returned, and a handshake after Sunday's match will be the least they share.

The Chelsea manager signed a four-year contract at Stamford Bridge yesterday and drawing level on points with their rivals would make the wine he intends to share with Wenger after the game taste that much better.

Grant said: "I will take some wine for him. Maybe I will take a bottle of French and a bottle of Israeli wine.

"He is a good friend of mine and is a top man and a great coach. I have known him for many years. I watched him work in France when nobody knew who he was and at Arsenal a couple of years after he started there.

"He came to visit me when I was coach of Israel and we played France, I watched him train Arsenal and I took a few things from watching him work. I keep my way but it is always good to develop your skills with other people.

"We have been out for dinner a few times and of course we talked about football, the philosophy of the game.

"I enjoy talking with him about his opinions on this and his views on life."

Grant is not just different to Mourinho in his relationship with Wenger.

The Frenchman may have charmed fans and pundits with his and Arsenal's style, but there are still a few managers in the Premier League who have never taken to him.

None of them, however, would argue about the attractive way Wenger's team play and Grant is aware that with his commitment to make Chelsea easier on the eye, comparisons between their sides will be made.

Grant said: "No two teams are the same. Arsenal have been playing their way for a long time. They have changed players but for more than 10 years they have had the same style. We started to develop ours three months ago. I want Chelsea to keep the good things from the past and follow the new way.

"It will be a very difficult game for us on Sunday but it will be tough for them too. Things are going well for us and we have achieved a lot, but we want more."

The Israeli has been rewarded for guiding the team to a 16-match unbeaten run and back into the title race with a £12million deal and he wants to celebrate with a win at Arsenal. But while Grant's sights are set on gaining glory this season, he is also looking to carve out a path for the future which would allow him to rival the record of his friend, the Arsenal manager.

He said: "All my life I have worked to win games and for the future. I always work for the short and long term and in top clubs especially you have to think one step ahead.

"I respect Wenger a lot. Everybody knows the style of his team and he has achieved a lot."

Wenger is one of the Premier League's longest-serving managers after 11 years and has won three titles and four FA Cups.

Given the significance of the game and the hostility which Ashley Cole's first return to Arsenal is set to bring, it is probably a good job that the managers get on.

Touchline fireworks will not be needed as the potentially crucial momentum and psychological advantage from winning at the start of the busy Christmas schedule is at stake.

Grant said: "The game is important in the title race. The return could be even more significant in four months' time, but matches between Arsenal and Chelsea are always big. That is especially so now when there is three points difference between us."

The fact Grant has been given the security of a four-year deal to plan for the future will have put the noses of a few of his doubters out of joint. Whispering campaigns about potential replacements for the Israeli next summer look set to continue, but he is defiant.

He said: "I am very happy [to have signed]. It was not easy what we have done but I believe Chelsea are a big club which can get bigger. I have been in coaching and management for more than 30 years and been all over the world and looked at all sports.

"I care only about my job at this club. I enjoy working here and will be very happy if the Chelsea people, the supporters like how the team is playing. That is what is important to me. The other stuff is their problem."