Will Arsenal manager’s decision scupper summer window?

Martin Keown has claimed that Arsene Wenger needs decide on his future as soon as possible, before it hampers Arsenal’s preparations for the new season.

The Gunners are overshadowed by a huge cloud of doubt at present, with the manager’s future, as well as key players Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil’s futures up in the air. Their top-four hopes are also ropey, and his decision would no doubt take some of the distraction away from the players on the pitch.

Wenger is out of contract in a month, but is believed to have been offered a new two-year deal, and has so far failed to confirm whether he intends to stay or not.

He had previously claimed that a decision would be announced ‘soon’, with many expecting the decision before May, but we are here now, and there appears to be no imminent announcement planned as of yet.

Keown has now urged him to announce his decision, saying: “The very first thing they need to do is work out who is in charge — and as soon as possible.

“Arsene Wenger is an outstanding manager but his standout quality has been wiped away.

“He creates a feelgood factor around the club and maps out the future for each player.

“With Wenger’s own future unsure, that creates uncertainty among the players and it is no coincidence that Arsenal’s Premier League form has suffered.”

He then added which type of player needs to be prioritised come post-season, saying: “On the pitch, they need to sign one of Europe’s best midfield players.

“Granit Xhaka is improving but he is not putting fear into the Premier League’s top teams.

“Arsenal need a player who can dictate the play. They have felt the loss of Santi Cazorla greatly and it has massively affected the group.”

Is a midfielder more important than a top striking addition? Could Wenger’s delayed decision mess up our transfer plans?

Pat J

Tags Arsenal

30 Comments

  1. Wenger doesnt need a reason. He’s been scuppering transfer windows for well over a decade all of his own accord.

    1. Wenger will leave on his own accord. Respect our greatest manager ever.
      One Arsene Wenger.

      1. Exactly – Wenger will leave of his own accord. His reasons are to do with himself and not Arsenal. I’ll reserve my respect for him when he finally decided to make the right decision.

        1. Arsene is a perfect shield for Kroenke. Kroenke knows that if he lets Arsene go, he will lose the only top manager in the world who is ready to work and make results (2 FA Cups and 2 Community Shields since the purchase of Ozil as a sign of the end of austerity) under Kroenke’s financial terms. Let Arsene go and all hell breaks will loose – suddenly the perfect scapegoat is gone and unhappy fans won’t see a new manager as a common denominator as they see Arsene now but the man who sits on piles of cash disinterested in results on the pitch which is the only thing most of football fans care about.

          1. Newsflash – Wenger spent over £90m last summer. He has players like Cech, Kos, Mustafi, Ozil and Sanchez and can’t get the team to perform.

            If Kronke is making funds available then what do you want from other than that? Is it Kronke’s fault that Ozil, who keeps on being voted Germany player of the year, is a pathetic shadow of himself now? Is it Kronke’s fault that Mustafi and Xhaka, two perfectly good footballers last season, are disasters now? Is it Kronke’s fault that Giroud and Walcott are playing for this club? Is it Kronke’s fault that Wenger refuses to buy a striker?

            1. I think you’re a bit harsh on King of Art Ozil, if he gets the attention and the environment to reach his potential, he will become the world beater again like in RM. the awful negativity which is displayed by so called “majority disgruntled fans, and the fact that they constantly felt the need to insult him affected his dipped performance a lot and he is not all to blame because of that unpleasant behavior from a lot like you.

              Confidence amongst artists, and the players that AW has accumulated are in the main that, rather than automatons or ordinary players, is fragile and I suspect that it is the breakdown in that which is the real source of the problem. Add to that numerous contract issues, I dare say that it it not a very happy place at present due to those surroundings negativity.

              I have no doubt that AW and his staff are working on this continuously, but are hampered by the media who would love him and them to fail, as well as elements of the supporters who, possibly, cannot see the wood for the trees.

              I don’t doubt for a minute that Arsene truly believed he was doing the right thing. Easy to spot, this particular snake wears a ridiculous giant wig. Kroenke out, the Board out.

          2. Don’t sell Wenger short! Surely there must be an Emirates cup there to list next to the coveted community shield???

  2. Disgruntled and show no respect fans is the reason for our players being under heavy pressure that’s not necessary from moaning fans like you that suppose to support the team through thick and thin. Managers come and go, but we should stay behind the team.

    1. Fans have every right to be disgruntled. The performances have not been acceptable and if you think fans should just shut up for some arbitrary reason that you have surrounding the manager then you need a reality check.

      1. There is too much going on in different areas, to be able to come to a concise solution.
        This is because, some things are football related, some are corporate related, some are administrative related and some (maybe all), are supporter related. Once we have worked out which pegs fit which holes, maybe we could get a grasp of what is actually happening.

        As long as the owners, the board, the CEO, the manager say nothing, then we don’t know what is happening.

        Finally, as much as the Owner probably cares about the “club” due to his investment, I’m willing to venture that he cares bugger all about us supporters.

    2. Talk about blaming the messenger ….Deluded manager plus greedy board has created a crisis at arsenal with third rate players being paid first rate wages to keep them loyal and drugged up fans like yourself overdosing on 4th place high … True fans want change when they see the club going in wrong direction not a string of drug crazed platitudes from tribal loyalists who are so deluded themselves that they actually believe the blame for the crisis lies with the people who have been pointing to its causes … Do you think financial crises only happen because people start warning about overlevaraged banks, the speculative and fraudulent behaviour of their overpaid employees and the indulgence of their massively overpaid senior management … Pathetic comment

      1. Any wise investor would look to increase his investment in well planned stages . While some fiscal leeway would be considered for certain ‘ corrections’ and unforeseen or unpredictable dips and losses, he would never dump his hard earned money on whims or on shows of popularity.
        Stan has bought the club for millions , given the board the license to run it prudently on his behalf. That his investment has increased in value is testament that it IS being done right.
        As in any businesses , anyone who is unhappy always have the choice
        of spending their money elsewhere.
        Even if it is your hometown club. Others are willing to appreciate what is on offer.

        1. suggest you crawl back under whatever corporate thicket you have emrged from and stop pretending you are a loyal fan who cares about the club… read up on “stan” and his wise investment strategy … a euphamism for tax gauging … and his backstopping trump`s inaugeration fiasco … before spouting this kind of claptrap

          1. I’d love to see a better class of fans who truly support the Arsenal . Who’d sing their hearts out for our players and really make it a joy to play for .

            And I think it will happen as those wishy-washy picky lot cross over to the other side, in the belief that the tide has changed .

            You will not be missed rkw (what’s that stand for rude king of whales?)!

        2. JemBut -You make me laugh!!! Ignorance is bliss I guess. You think Kroenke added alpha to Arsenal???? Because of the influx of TV revenue etc, all brand name clubs have gone up in value. Arsenal’s increase in value was not a result of Kroenke and his astute management. If I buy the S&P on Jan 1st, 2016 and sell on dec 31st I made 10% return together with the entire market. That does not make me a good equity manager.

          If Arsenal loses out on a top 4 finish (which is virtually a certainty) value will, in fact, be destroyed. Not easy to do, well done Kroenke. Anyone valuing an asset of the size of Arsenal runs discounted cash flow models, with the loss of the top 4 and CL the models have to be adjusted downwards by at least 40 million of CL cash a year for the next 3-5 years.

          But more importantly what kind of football fan are you to worry more about the investment side than the sporting side. I guess you have an equal absence of ambition to Kroenke and Wenger which IMO doesn’t belong in football at the level Arsenal once aspired to.

          Owners of Chelsea, City and Man U etc. are no dummies either yet they manage to win trophies and spend big money not to mention the Spanish clubs.

          No water from all the oceans of the world will wash away the fact that with the squad we have Wenger has grossly underperformed and the owner has no clue about football given the contract situation of his key “assets”. Oh, how smart he is.

          We don’t need “Wenger” fans like you. Why don’t you join a Sunday afternoon investment club instead?

          1. The owner does not care. Not one bit. He might make some noises to suggest he does, or we might get another back-channel article from his son in a favorite newspaper about how a former legend is on the agenda, but I would like nothing more than for Stan and Josh Kroekne to sell up, gone and never come back.

            I know it’s nigh on impossible, and the idea of Arsenal being owned and run by people who care about what happens to the club is practically a pipe dream, but they are presiding over a steady and seemingly inexorable deterioration of Arsenal Football Club. Kroenke is a big, big problem, and if you want to be angry with the manager that’s fine and perfectly understandable, but save some ire for him too.

            And what of our intrepid Chief Executive, Ivan Gazidis? He broke his silence the other day, but it was only to talk about how excited he was that we’d be playing RP Leipzig in the Emirates Cup in July. Not a word, not a single word about the manager and his future. Not a word about the future of the football club, the plans we have, no holding anybody or anything to account, and his nonsensical ‘catalyst of change’ mess can go into the same dump bin his ‘We can compete with Bayern Munich’ horse dump lives in now.

            So are you that thick that Arsene will handing over himself his new contract, eh, vincent janssen? The spuds striker, that might be a clue of whom you support. Mind the gap eh, as you shouted right now.

            1. You were the one who was talking about different classes of fans and insinuating you were the gatekeeper to the standard Arsenal fans should meet. And that one such standard is not to question Wenger’s ability.

              I agree with you that Kroenke (and Gazidas) are much bigger problems then Wenger and are both detrimental to the club. Ask yourself if owners who care would have stuck with Wenger?

              But that doesn’t mean that a new manager would not benefit this club. Or that Wenger should be beyond fan’s criticism. Most fans on here as far as I can tell all agree the problem starts with Kroenke but unfortunately for us it is a lot easier to try to influence the club to change manager than the owner.

              If Wenger had any pride at all he would have announced his departure. He doesn’t have to wait for a new owner to do that. However I honestly believe Wenger doesn’t realize he has lost the plot completely
              and the game has passed him by and he now has no longer the recognition of his peers in the game making it impoosible for him to stay and be effective. Is there any doubt in your mind that if Mourinho or Pep or Conte would have gone to Mbappe’s house last summer when he was out of contract that the lad would have jumped for on the opportunity to play for these managers?

              Monaco is a terrible place to play most home games are played infornt of mainly empty stadiums yet the lad choose that over playing for Wenger.

              I have 100% accepted that the downward sipral we are in will most likely continue under a new manager as well now that we have dropped out of the CL places, however I for one can not watch another season of Wenger football and Wenger excuses.

              For years I have had to suffer the embarasment 😉 of Wenger talking about us “being naive in our defending when we conceded the goal” as if he is not responsible for fixing that naivity. Yer after the Spurs destruction he brought out this infamous line again!!! Does the man have no pride?? Does he have no responcibility in fixing these persisitent problems??? He is finished as a manager and now he can only insult us.

              Do you hosnetly believe the club will let Sanchez’s contract run down and allow him to go to any rival for free? And lose 40 or 50 million in the process?? No me neither yet Wenger insults us with stupid statements about how Sanchez will stay. I could go on and on why Wenger is simply no longer the manager to take us forward regardless the owner. I would sooner suffer a year with Big Sam as manager but have an identity than hear about how Wenger and his cronies are going to win the PL and want to do great things and how Ramsey is our future. Honestly it has made me sick and lose all respect the bunch, They have no pride.

              Why do we need a better class of fan?? We have all stood by the man for 13 baren years no other football fan would have done that.

  3. Wenger needs no help whatsoever in ensuring the transfer window is a damp squid.

    My only hope is that A. They already have an agreement for Wenger to leave for another venture and a replacement in place or B. That mounting fan pressure continuing on Saturday will convince AW and some of the board alike that signing the new contract (Supposedly on the table) is not the best thing for him to do.

    I can dream can’t I?

    1. The faithless, fickle plastic fanboys, This COULD work IF the owner and Board were willing to spend like there was no tomorrow but that is NOT the Arsenal way and I doubt it will ever be. However, looking at the three teams who have followed this model so far, and as once again pointed out, total spend is not automatically inclusive of success. Encourage those true Gooners who cheer on their team regardless to stand up and be counted. The away support for the team was generally very positive and the players noticed this. When you feel that the supporters are there to cheer you on, not judge or diss you, mentally you have more prospects of performing above average than when you are looking over your shoulder.

      AFC and especially Wenger and the Board MUST confront the media and even the boo-boys and show the true supporters what these clowns really are. Bring up more youth and keep transfers that are good investments coming. Rejuvenate the team with a series of younger transfers who, like Holding, Xhaka, Elneny etc. can challenge the veterans for a place. Those players who run hot and cold like Walcott, Gibbs, Iwobi and Welbeck need to be given specific and realistic targets to achieve and be held accountable for every performance that is subpar, since subpar is only a good thing in golf! This means that the legendary patience of Wenger must be mitigated a bit and that these under-performers feel the heat a retirement or bit.

      ONE ARSENE WENGER.

  4. Silent Stan is clearly a major problem. The stories we hear about his other sporting franchises tell us that. But Arsene Wenger is also a major problem, and changing managers is much easier than changing owners, so it’s where the club needs to start.

    We may not pay insane money for players (EG. Like Man U for Pogba) but we do buy big-money players (Like Ozil) and Gazidis has repeatedly stated that the “Money is there” if Wenger wants it.

    Arsenal players are often criticized for being “Not good enough” but it’s a team full of internationals. Most of them have shown what they can do on their day, often with their national teams, who use them much more effectively than Wenger does.

    The “Wenger Favourites” system is really holding back the current squad, and making it look much worse than it actually is.

    A younger, more up-to-date, hungrier manager could do much better with the squad that we already have, let alone with the rumoured £200m budget for transfers this summer.

    1. Don’t matter how much Wenger has in he’s pocket, you know as well as most of us, he won’t do as we know he should. On paper we have some world class and ok good players as well. And some shouldn’t be footballers at all. It’s all down to the coaching. Who do you think is in charge of that.

  5. You know it is time to leave for Wenger when even staunchly loyal ex-players like Keown are giving the strongest hint possible that they can not wait for him to resign.

    It is a shame Wenger’s once great legacy has been destroyed. He will be for always remembered as the guy that went 15 years without winning anything of note. Yes, I say 15 years because I am convinced he will preside over another 2 laughable years during which he and the club will remain the joke of the football world.

    I promise you this deluded man will actually be telling you in Aug/Sep that winning the PL title is the target!!!!!! (and I promiss you the only way is down under his guidance.)

    1. I think it’s funny how in all the years I have watched Arsenal, people complain or predict that we will finish outside the top four. So really Arsene Wenger has exceeded expectations for at least 12 years, since the last title, and still they complain.

      If you happen to have a spare couple of Billion pounds then please feel from to offer it to our current majority shareholders in exchange for their shares. That is absolutely thinly way that you will achieve a change in ownership in the club. If you haven’t then regrettably there is nothing that you or anyone else can do about it and the kind of diatribe that you have posted is really a complete waste of time. Our fanbase has always been split as the multiple articles on this and the Arsenal history websites have shown. The club has shares which are publicly traded currently for something in the order of £17,250 each.

      Jansenn eh, the spuds striker, not a coincidence err.

      1. You are a bit of a sloppy thinker or disingenuous writer. Even if all fans at some part of all the last 12 seasons predicted we might finish outside the top 4 this doesn’t mean that expectations were met. Expectations every year were set for a PL title. Even your great Wenger himself last week in an interview said that the PL title was his goal.
        This burned out man has received the greatest backing from fans of any manager in football. So don’t make this about the fans. They stood by him forever, to criticize the fans after all that support is daft.

        On the insinuation that one could buy Arsenal football club on the public market, it just shows how thinly you are informed and how freely you speak despite the obvious absence of knowledge. Do some research when you spout stuff like this. Even if one would buy the entire float of Arsenal holdings available on the market one would own less than 1% of the club.

        As I said go join an investment club if you are so interested in finances. Or go join a Wenger fan club, but this is an Arsenal board and you would do well to respect other peoples opinions before you start asking for a “better class” of fan. Who do you think you are?

        I respect fans who supprt WEnger and believe he is the future (Sam P comes to mind – good guy), I don’t respect fans who question the “standard” of fans who don’t fall at the feet of Wenger.

  6. Adding top quality to both positions is as vital as the other. If Alexis stays you could argue that CM might be the more vital. For me having Alexis play in the hole between striker and CM has champion’s written all over it, it would be such a massive waste to not see this play out. Hazard for Chelsea, Alexis would be that massive player for us but not always relied on the way he is now. Then we need wingers who can go past players and have a bit about them, all that would need to be sorted and what’s left is the CB.

    I hear we are rivaling City for Gaya, if true, that prob means Kolasinac is seen as a CB.

    1. We will proceed to play with the back 3. So Kolasinac will be put in left sided CB.

      Kokakolasinac – Koz – Mustafa.

  7. He might be waiting for the FA cup to be over to announce his decision. Either way it’s not helpful.

  8. Been supporting this club for over 50 years now.seen the great the good and not so good.But one thing I’ve never seen is this club be so much of a circus act as it is now.

Comments are closed

Top Blog Sponsors