How Campbell saga highlights Wenger’s worth to Arsenal

Arsenal fans should appreciate Arsene more by Sam P

The section of the Arsenal fans that are fed up with Arsene Wenger and keep asking for the club to move on and get a new manager have gone a little bit quiet at the minute. They do make some good points and it will not take too much for the questions to come flying in again, but for now the manager appears to have a bit of leeway, even with the team still sitting outside the top four of the Premier League.

With a good looking draw in the Champions League and a home tie with Middlesborough in the fifth round of the FA cup, along with a return to form on the pitch and the signing of a quality central defender, things are looking quite rosy for us right now. This made me think it was a good time for a bit of Wenger appreciation.

And the curious case of Joel Campbell, in my opinion, just highlights how much the Prof does for the club and how hard his job is. We took for granted a place in the Champions League every year even when we knew there was little or no money to spend and we expect our manager to get everything right, all the time.

But look how complicated things have been with Campbell, just one player in a big squad. No work permit and then having to sort out loan deals to the right clubs, keeping an eye on him while considering whether to sign more strikers.

Even since Campbell returned to the squad last summer, there have been issues of whether to play him, loan him, sell him and his agent keeps popping up and having a moan. Wenger is trying to consider the squad, the present situation and need, the future of the club, the best for the player and of course the best for the club as a whole, not to mention the small matter of keeping us lot happy.

Campbell has now gone to Villarreal, more for his own sake and the future of his Arsenal career than for this season and that could come back to bite Wenger, but it was a decision that had to be made. At least Wenger made sure that he signed a new contract before letting him go, to avoid a Carlos Vela situation.

Only time will tell if Wenger has done the right thing. You can’t win em but how about some credit when he does win them and a bit of understanding when he doesn’t?

Tags Villarreal

28 Comments

  1. and i seriously consider that joel campbell should play a more defensive role his cousin sol campbell did well with arsenal fc πŸ™ πŸ™ πŸ™ πŸ™ πŸ™

    1. @haywill or Pythagoras…
      how come you keep changing your name..? are you an invisible man? not my business but just curious

  2. and im startin to think to disclose the conspiracy theory#34 but im not sure…… πŸ™ πŸ™ πŸ™

  3. Joel is going to explode suddenly like Le Coq. Let us hope that it happens September 2015

    How much better is the Ox from last season.

    1. let’s face it – with alexis, ox, theo back in the squad, and even welbeck and santi on the wings it would be hard to get joel some game time. good move by wenger. villareal have always had dynamic wingers and this could just be the perfect proving ground for campbell. all the best luck to you man.

  4. i know somethins gonna happen before the transfer window i wanna share but i godda feelin that ill be abused again like when i said alexis sanchez would be a gunner i got thumbs downs people called me deluded and i felt hurt and brokenhearted and when alexis really did come no one noticed me and say thanks to me so now im confused whether i myself me i am should tell u guys or not somethins gonna happen somethin big big time….. πŸ™ πŸ™ πŸ™ πŸ™

  5. another self denial article….if a player is not good enough then he should leave…and make way for better players…..

    the same for manager who cant perform and deliver results…..

    Campbell was signed to perform…if he cant make it to the first team or subs…this means that hes not good enough….he should leave…

    1. Sell Giroud and sign Suarez. Sell Szczesny and sign Neuer. Sell Monreal sign Gaya.
      Sign top top CDM.

        1. Please spend some money….

          one and only Hafiz Rahman….and no others

          the House of Rahman represent….

          1. The House of Rahman represents all that is completely puerile, thoughtless, meaningless and pathetic on this website. Rahman out! Haywill and Moneytalks and so bad I think they are his aliases!

  6. So we are supposed to celebrate Wenger NOT using Campbell in situations where he could be used earlier this season then having the good sense to send away a player he knows he will refuse to put on the pitch for Arsenal? Do I have that right???

  7. Credit where it is due?
    In August 2011 Arsenal signed
    Campbell for 4 years.
    8 days later his time at Arsenal
    finished because he had no work permit. Duh!!!
    He was packed off to France then Greece. He got his permit in 2013 but
    was not invited back to Arsenal. In the summer of 2014 Campbell was resigned
    by Arsenal for 2 years. Out of 22 Premer league games Campbell played
    16 minutes of one game. Now he has been packed off to Spain.
    4 years contracted to Arsenal and just 16 minutes of EPL football.
    Yes Campbell has been a rip roaring success at Arsenal alright.
    All credit to the manager. Brilliant job πŸ™

    1. BTW:
      The work permit was originally an issue. After a year or so Wenger just used it as an excuse for not bring Campbell to EPL. After a while NOBODY bought the line about “work permit issues” anymore – it even became kind of a joke after a while.

    2. We signed Campbell at a young age when clubs like Man U also showed interest in him. We have been loaning him out, so he hasn’t been costing us anything. It has also been to clubs that don’t pose a threat to Arsenal, and where he has been getting regular game time.

      I much prefer this scenarion to him scoring goals against us with a Man U shirt on.

  8. Wenger makes some good calls. Many fans wanted to give Campbell more game time but Wenger was careful when to include him and he has not proved himself in those moments. Us fans wanted Ballotelli and Falcao… even Welbeck has been better than them. It seems Wenger is finally improving tactically in the big games. We are gaining top players …not losing top players like other seasons. Im hoping Wenger gets a few major trophies in these last years before he hands over to a younger coach.

  9. I don’ get it.

    Wenger acquires Campell but does not bring him to EPL for years. (Not buying the work permit excuse).

    Campbell shows his talent on loan and in world cup.

    Wenger brings him to EPL and states that Campbell is NOT GOING ANYWHERE.

    Wenger then, in the same season, NEVER put him on the pitch.

    Wenger then, in the same season, sends him aways again.

    And this is all supposed to prove he is a GENIUS????

    Wow, I must be a double genius or something.

    1. He didn’t really show his talent on loan. He scored one great goal against United. He was pretty average for Olympiakos. He was decent during the world cup but you all are definitely overrating his performance there as well. I actually like Campbell a lot, so I have followed quite closely. He has never really done any of this impressing you all talk about

  10. This article is complete horse crap.
    What is the point of it, that Wenger is a genius for doing what every other manager does, buys players and loans them out?
    Christ knows how much of your life you wasted writing it, that’s a minute of my life I won’t get back!

  11. Worst article of the year so far.. Can’t really find any sense in this…. You can do better if you want to praise your lord arsene wenger than this

  12. Stupid and senseless article just to tell us that Wenger is a genius.Didn’t you have anything better to do with your time? Are you trying to make the AOB guilty or what?

Comments are closed

Top Blog Sponsors