The Curious Case of Arsene Wenger by CU
Hi Guys, this is the first time I’m writing an article for justarsenal.com and I have to apologize for this very long article…sorry I meant book. I have to give credit to Konstantin for his article about the club and Wenger and the board lacking ambition because that inspired me to write this piece. I have been an Arsenal fan since 1996 which was pretty much when AW took over as Manager of our great club. Fans will probably call me an AKB which is fine but I call myself an Arsenal fan and feel no shame to support my club and also our manager. Arsene Wenger has made some mistakes but I will explain why I believe he still deserves a chance as manager.
The major criticism that has been leveled at Arsene Wenger is for not winning a single trophy in 9 years. Why don’t we look at that closely?
FA cup trophy————————–2005
Moved into Emirate Stadium——2006
No trophy——————————2006 to 2013
FA cup trophy————————-2014
Champs league———————–1996 to 2014
I know this is what AKB fans always throw to defend our club and manager but why do people who claim to be realist (AOB) always ignore this FACT?? It is definitely not fiction and certainly not a coincidence that Arsenal stopped winning trophies the same year we moved into the Emirates and won a trophy the first year in 9 years we started spending serious money (money that was not given but earned).
The AOBs are right to say Wenger targeted 4th but my question is, was he wrong to do so? The club made targets for themselves and success for the club at that time was basically to get into the Champs league to keep on getting more MONEY to keep the club AFLOAT by maintaining its DEBTS. The Club made a decision in the direction they wanted to go for the future of the club and they went head on. We are obviously yet to find out if the decision was the right one and only time will tell.
The transition period was a very painful period for us fans but you cannot tell me Arsene Wenger was not hurt as well. But he committed himself to the project and definitely sacrificed himself and his reputation for the love he has for this great club. That’s why a fan that was born yesterday can wake up in the morning and say Wenger is deluded and clueless and stupid. But my question is, how did a man with no tactics predict his team will go unbeaten and achieve it? A wise man once said, the end will ALWAYS justify the means.
To be fair the only trophy that I believe shows a measure of the strength of your club and team is the League trophy. The reason I say this is because although the Champion’s league is a prestigious trophy, it is a knock out competition which practically means, the best team ON THE DAY wins. So it’s not a given right that the best team on paper wins. That goes for the other knock out competitions like FA Cup and Carling. The league is a true measure of the strength of the club and team in general. So yes we have been 4th for 10 years where the club was focused on MONEY and considered a trophy as a bonus. So yes it is right to say we have not won the Premier league in 10 years and counting, BUT now that we are spending money, making 2nd or 3rd this season will be a major statement that we are improving as a club and team. If Arsene Wenger can achieve this, why then should he go?? I guess we have to wait until May because if that happens it basically confirms that Arsenal FC CAN improve under Wenger especially when he has the resources required to meet his targets.
The targets of the club have now obviously changed from top 4 to WINNING trophies. This is visible from the amount of money we have spent in the past 2 seasons. Our trial period in terms of the Emirates move is over and we passed. Why you might ask?? Well if we failed we won’t have won a trophy last season (FA cup would be used to blood youngsters), we won’t have players like Alexis and Ozil come into the club, and we definitely would not be able to keep players like Cazorla, Walcott and Ramsey because we would probably be playing Europa league (or even not been in Europe) and still have probably 5 more years to go in paying of the stadium because we are not getting enough money into the club (no Champions league).
If anyone is truly sincere to themselves and you want to be angry with Wenger and the board, then be angry for them taking a decision to move to the Emirates in the first place, because that caused the lack of trophies. There was no way with the budget we had we would have been able to win the Premier league during the transition period – especially with the emergence of the oil clubs. I know people will say then ‘why didn’t they focus on other trophies like FA and Carling cup’? The answer is simple, the FA Cup and Carling would not have given Arsenal the MONEY they needed to stay afloat. It will also risk fatigue and injury on first team players who can be used to achieve clubs number one target…..TOP 4. That is why Wenger used those competitions to blood out youngsters, while the main team focused on getting into Champions league.
Sad but true, that was the direction the club took, and I believe Wenger would have won a couple of trophies still because of his class however no one saw the fatal blow which involved our top players been pouched. So not only did we not win trophies but we even became a Southampton and Dortmund (Selling club).
People can say that means Arsenal is a small club by not targeting trophies. I disagree; Arsenal took these risks because of ambition. Being self sufficient and wealthy as a Club is the goal. Football is all about money. You also need money for trophies. So now that the debt is paid, it means Arsenal has a very bright future. Arsenal chose to do the right thing the right way and is slaughtered for it. How would you feel if your wife left you because you manage your finances the right way? You are not a drug dealer and did not inherit wealth like the Prince of Wales but you are aspiring to be a millionaire one day by working hard and investing your money correctly for the future BUT noooo…..your gold digging wife wants a 7 room apartment now and her personal Ferrari and because you can’t afford that she spits on your face and says you lack ambition. Does that ring any bells?? We are not glory hunting fans or plastic fans like Man City and Chelsea. We should be proud that our club is carving it’s own way to achieve it’s own destiny and we are heading in the right direction. If you make a decision to be wealthy, you have to also make sacrifices. Wealth is not given to you, it is created by you. Arsenal FC took these steps for the future of our great club and there is no shame in that.
Let’s just say we sacrificed 4th spot back then for FA cup and Carling cup, we probably would have won a few trophies but I’m definitely sure we would not have made Champions league on a consistent basis which means it would have taken the club longer to pay of the stadium and also for us to be able to get the likes of Alexis, Ozil and even Cazorla. Based on that context I will have to agree with some of the decisions Wenger made.
I can understand when fans from other clubs say Wenger is a failure. It is expected, it is rivalry mixed with envy but I really still don’t get it when OUR fans say it. The TARGET for the club was Top 4 and Wenger met the targets of the club so how is that a failure?? Yes he is a failure to people who had very HIGH expectations and don’t get me wrong, I’m not knocking any Arsenal Fan for having those expectations based on what we have achieved prior to the trophy-less years. But like I said earlier, if you are angry, direct it at the club for making the decision to move to the Emirates. However the future years will speak volumes and we would definitely know if the club made the right decision because like I said, the end justifies the means.
Be it as it may Arsene Wenger performed a miracle. A miracle that Jose Maureen hoe would not understand and I will pay money to see him deliver the same or more under such financial restraints.
Some fans will say, hold on Arsenal is the 5th richest club in the World. Okay let’s go back to school kids. No one is lying to us because YES Arsenal is the 5th richest club in the world. But please, please, please remember that the rich stats are in terms of revenue NOT PROFIT. So basically if my company generates One million pounds revenue but my expenses are 800k due to paying staff and company loan from a bank, then that leaves me with profit 200K pounds. So if my wife sees that my company generates one million pounds, it does not mean I can afford a Mansion of 850K and the witch wants to eat my head out because her cousin bought a house that cost 600K pounds just last week But we can only afford 150K home. Need I explain more because this is basically the type of conversations fans make with other club fans? (Only joking…my wife is an angel…lol)
In conclusion, the stadium is now paid off. Obviously our targets have changed. An FA cup was won last year and we are in contention for another. We have an opportunity to make 2nd with Man City in our sights. Our players are better and Arsene’s tactics are much improved, due to the depth of our squad available to him. Can we win the title in years to come?…of course we can. And if you don’t agree, then I’m sorry I couldn’t convince you. You are perfectly entitled to your opinion but remember that the same ‘Wenger out’ band wagon which really was founded by non fans said, “Wenger will never win trophies”….well we know what happened last year. Their new argument now is “he will never win the PL”…lol. Wenger is toooo stingy and will never spend on world class players. Can all the WC players in Arsenal please stand up??
Now that Wenger has also made personal sacrifices and used his experience, wisdom and craftsmanship to keep us in the top 4 during the financial constraints, the club now has money and the first thing some fans want is for him to leave the club? Are you for real?? I’m sorry but If I was Wenger, I’m not going nowhere until I win the Premier League trophy or Champions league. Wenger said he will win the title in 2 years and I definitely believe he will not only win – but dominate the league before bowing out. This is the same man that said we will go unbeaten and the media and pundits laughed at him. He failed to achieve it the year he made that statement but achieved the next season.
For me, he deserves to get that chance especially for everything he has done for the club. I believe he has signed his last contract for Arsenal FC and he is going to make history before he leaves. This is not just been about AKB or AOB, but it is high time we give our support to our manager, and let him see out his contract and bring back the glory days, which he is very capable of doing especially now that he has the resources at his disposal.
Thanks and God bless you all.
Charles
Yeah he’s done enough time 2go now 4another manager 2take us ahead
God bless you too, Charles. You must have have put in a lot to get all that off your chest.
Well, I’m not gonna call you an AKB, though that’s what you are.
After next season, if Wenger does not win the league trophy and me the Champions’ League round of 8, off he goes.
And “make” the champions’ league round of 8. LOl.
I understand what your saying and yes Wenger has done a good job , but we are STILL targeting 4 th which is wrong
We are not targetting 4th you idiot, we are targetting to snatch City’s position which is 2nd
just a great article man,don,t need to add anything else,congrats need more of this!!!
Computer says no
All he had to do was buy one cb in the summer. That is all. We would have been a complete team. But he didn’t.
Before calling him a genius, consider this – there was not one cb in world football that could have come to Arsenal in the summer? Quite amazing frankly that this is the work of a genius!!!!!!!
And please tell me one CB who was quality enough to play for Arsenal and was not willing to stay at his club ?? And I can bet he wouldn’t have been better than Gabriel??
No cbs left in the world? Just wow………..
Let’s not forget that it was Wenger who brought Mertesacker to this club.We cannot rely on his wisdom to find a top class CB when he is always trying to buy on the cheap. Even our star player Kos was bought from second division in France. There is a long list of defensive failures who have not been good enough but have hung around picking up offensibly high wages.Also considering the club were existing on a near starvation diet Mr.Wenger managed to broker for himself one the highest salaries in world football.His stubbornness is beyond belief and is a serious flaw in his character. Over the past few years We’ve had to suffer some horrendous results for which any other club would have booted him out The article was too long and repetiitive.
Wenger out!!!
Same mistakes every year!
His ideas are outdated….needs a modern coach to assist him!
You mean replace him surely?
The reality is that only Arsene will decide the time to call it a day but than again he will not delegate any duties to his no2 so we are stuck in a rut…EPL & ECL is beyond us.
Time will tell NIKK.
Hopefully he will eventually see that he has taken the club as far as he can and do the right thing.
If not..rest safe in the knowledge he will go and AFC will go on.
COYG!
Any problem if you want to call it a problem, rises because the ownership of the club wants to compete in a way that in today’s enviroment is extremely hard to do.
So…ok????
We move into the Emirates and then stop winning trophies!!!??? Mmmmmmm
Must have been we were getting use to playing on the pitches new grass for all those years!! No FA Cup in that time: the same period in which the mighty Portsmouth with all their infinite riches won it…
Fast forward and DIEGO & ATHLETICO win a top flight league in Spain with less funds.
That’s it, yes! The reason why we had no success all those years.
Good case made:)
Yeh,
Just thumb down and ignore reality.
What “reality”? Am I hearing your argument correctly? Arsenal have no valid excuse for not winning the PL/UCL in the past 10 years because Portsmouth win the FA Cup and Atletico won La Liga? That is your conclusive proof that Arsenal have massively under performed? Wow.
Oh.. You again.
So Portsmouth and others win the FA cup in that time but we didn’t? Is that not enough underperformance for you Jonesy?! Or would you like more?
Go away you sycophant.
Jonestown doesn’t do reason, or even bother to read what you write. I mean he just suggested your argument was comparing Atletic winning la liga to Portsmouth winning the FA cup.
The debate will never be won, too many blindly loyal and unable to just get a whiff of the coffee. In a decade we couldn’t win the Fa cup or Carling cup which would’ve placated, to some end, the fact we were miles away in the league/CL.
Now we manage an FA cup when the time and money has been put in to see us challenge for the lleague and CL it is NOW supposed to be worthy of a parade (literally).
But hey we can always blame the money argument even though cutting edge management is prevailing all over Europe (even here in england with L’Pool). It’s sad because by saying Wengercan no longer take us forward, people somehow hear you give him no credit for what he’s done. 2 polar opposites. Crazy
Portsmouth who? Which League are Portsmouth playing football now?
Imagine if AFC was run by the same people who run Portsmouth. Hypothetically, we probably would’ve won a trophy 8-9 years ago. But to what price? We would’ve been playing football on the same league as them now?
Arsen Wenger is the best thing has ever happened to Arsenal football club. Was AW vision and philosophy which made AFC one of the top clubs in the world, debt free and the best run club along with Bayern Munich.
People stop moaning, see things in perspective, there is no other way but upwards. Year by year it will only get better. Castle was not build in one day.
Come on gunners! Its another day at the office for us away at newcastle today, so lets be focus and beat newcastle getting that all important 3 precious points hoping that man city loses again so we can go 2nd! Coyg!
Mancity ain’t Losing today…..we best win ours
Honestly I don’t even bother to answer people wanting Wenger out. Not because I believe Wenger is the best manager in the world (because he is not). I stick to Wenger because he stuck to the club when he could have gone for glory everywhere (Madrid, Bayern, France etc). The day Dein left he put his resignation but Dein convinced him not to do so. The amount of bashing this guy took just to create a global brand (which Arsenal is today) is immense and this is why he is having my full support until he finishes his current contract.
Arsenal average position in the league before Wenger was 7th. After he came the average position until today is 3rd. In a much, much, much more difficult league than before.
Also I have never seen a manager who can keep the team in top 4 when you have unlucky injuries season in and season out, also with not sufficient transfer budget during all the years…??
Others would say that it is his training methods but they don’t realize that all the injuries the players get are on the pitch, well mostly.
Others would also say that we are only in top 4 because top teams slipped down, so I would say that we would also have to capitalize on their mistakes, otherwise no benefits of that…
I don’t understand the training method talk about Wenger trains the players too hard.
You hear players like Ozil & Alexis say the tempo of the premier league is much harder & that every game demands a lot. So to me that means players need to be fitter and work harder in the premier league.
Also were one of a few teams that compete in Europe so we play usually 6+ games more than most other teams.
Most of our players play for there international teams.
We win more games because our players are fitter than the players at other clubs because the players train harder.
Verdict our players need to train harder than they would at most other clubs.
Plus like you said most injuries happen during games.
Great article in wenger we trust COYGUNNERS
I think he’s the right man for the job I still don’t think there are many managers who have an eye for talent like him & now we’ve got the money you can see he’s building something special.
We went through a period where due to not having the funds havering to buy 2nd, 3rd and even 4th choice players because we were priced out our main targets. We also had to have a team made up of mainly youth players that have taken time to develop and a lot who have moved on before there best years. It’s been a delicate period that 99% of managers would not have kept us in the same position.
One thing I’d like to see him do is be a little bit more ruthless with some players. During his early years he moved some great players on to be replaced by others so I know he’s capable of being ruthless. Most of the players were sold even long before the stadium was built to fund the long term project right from the sale of Anelka to help fund the training facilities.
We went through a period where because of a lack of funds players suddenly became more powerful than the club and could force moves now we’re in a position where we’re not I think I’d like Wenger to make an example of someone (per) club captain give some other players a scare.
I also agree with his philosophies we don’t have players that dive, surround referees & we mostly play a style of football that is great to watch. Yes there will be a time when Wenger moves on and hopefully someone like pep will replace him but the reality is he will be manager for the next couple of seasons and writing “Wenger out” on a forum day in day out won’t change that. Back him back the team good things are happening.
I think the 18 years the boss has served at Arsenal FC as the manager has turned and made him a Cult. Even the Arsenal board are comfortable with his overall team squad management. And thus, have not ever contemplate to remove him even when a branch of Arsenal supporters, the AOB vehinmentally wanted him, the Cult Arsene Wenger out. And Charles, if you have not yet have the belief and believe that Arsenal are the this season Barclays Premier League Champions. I will encourage you to have a belief and believe your belief will undoubtedly come to pass successfully. Not only that. Arsenal are the 2015 FA Cup winners, having already won the Charity Shield Trophy title in the beginning of this season. Waoh! The Gunners are the treble Champions of the 2014/15 season. That’s what the negatives of the 3 photos showed me as I held it up and looked at it. Every Gooners and doubting Thomases will see the photos when the negatives are developed for viewing.
It’s all too much this:
Miracles, faith & belief hoohar
Your right it is like a Cult with bloody Wenger as the Waco massacrer.
I prefer emperial evidence myself as is collected in science.
“Do not question the leader!”
Why?
“Because he is our leader”
Yes, question the leader, I agree. Always if it makes sense. Question the leader when the one questioning the leader can actually do a better job than him. Is that simple. There are few people who can question Wenger being better than him at what he’s doing. But these are not working under/with Wenger so they talk from outside the events.
Budd. im not a football coach but I should still be able to question his abilities and performance should I not?
Otherwise what is the forum for?
Still. I’m off to enjoy Saturday (hopefully). Hope you do the same.
A very good article from Charles; I like the logical sequence used. You see,more than 95percent of managers cannot achieve this fit under same condition,therefore I concur with you that it is a miracle. People seems not understand that we only started to compete for epl trophy last season after moving to Emirate. Due to not winning a trophy for such a long period of time,there is no way the EMOTION of most fans will let them have a clear judgement on the ability of Wenger as a coach. To me I still believe Wenger can win the epl again but his problems are his stuborness and the way he approaches games with top teams away from home;he always like to play his own way by disrespecting the opponent but I think he has corrected that this season.