Mr. Stan and Josh Kroenke – What are your real ambitions for Arsenal FC and is Arteta the right man? by Larry
Hello again my beloved Arsenal Fans. It’s been a long, long time since I wrote an article on this website going back to December 8th, 2019. I want to say that I love all you readers, fans and contributors to this website and sincerely want nothing but the very best for the team and its success.
I will also state that I am still hoping that Arsenal can achieve a Top 4 finish this season, especially after two consecutive eighth places finishes, and nothing less. The Arsenal Football Club that we support is a BIG club in the Premier League with a history of championship pedigree and is the ONLY team to go unbeaten in a 38-game season.
The Arsenal Football Club we support is supposed to be challenging for league titles along with the other domestic trophies every season, even if we fail in the end.
The Arsenal Football Club we support is supposed to qualify for the Champions League every season. Arsenal qualified for the Champions League for nineteen successive seasons from 1998-99 to 2015-16.
What has gone drastically wrong since our last qualification in 2015-16? Our legendary Manager, Arsene Wenger stepped down at the end of 2017-18 season with Arsenal finishing in 6th place on 63 points some 12 points off 4th place. Arsenal finished in 5th place on 70 points at end of 2018/19 season under Unai Emery and runners-up in the Europa League final.
During 2019/20 Emery was sacked mid-way through the season and Arteta hired. Arsenal finished in 8th place on 56 points, some 10 points off 4th place but winning the FA Cup under our Rookie Manager. Arsenal finished last season in 8th place again under Arteta on 61 points some 6 points off 4th place but did not qualify for any European competitions for the first time since 1994-95 season. As we all know, Arsenal are currently sitting in 5th place on 54 points with 8 remaining games. I ask you three important questions now?
What are your expectations for the remainder of Arsenal’s season?
Do you think Arteta is the right man for the job?
What is the owner’s real ambitions for Arsenal FC?
I travelled from Manchester to attend Arsenal’s home game against Brighton last Saturday, but was truly disappointed at the poor performance overall.
I paid £162.00 per ticket for my son and I to attend but felt like requesting a full refund after the game. Since the game I’ve watched the commentors on Arsenal Football TV website like Robbie Lyle, Lee Judges, James Bayliss and Cecille Thomas analyse the game in depth. I also am a big fan of ESPN FC and routinely watch and enjoy the pundits post-game analysis. The truth of the matter is that most of the criticism for the losses to Brighton, Crystal Palace and a few other games was aimed at Arteta.
In summary, Arteta continues to make the same mistakes with team selection time and time again. Since his appointment during the 2019-20 season and until now, the high number of players that have fallen out of favour with Arteta is staggering, whether they are still out on loan, their contract terminated or been sold.
Can I list a few? Aubameyang, Willian, Mustafi, Guendouzi, Maitland-Niles, Saliba, Torreira, Tavares, Ozil, etc. Let’s move on but I ask the question again? Is Arteta the right man for this job? Do you think he can still manage the team to a Top 4 finish especially with injuries to Partey and Tierney?
Let’s turn our attention back to the owners for a minute. What is the owner’s real ambitions for Arsenal FC? The true answer to this question is so important to us Die-hard Arsenal fans.
As we know or have heard, Mr. Stan Kroenke is a very successful American billionaire “businessman”, and I am assuming so is his son Josh. Mr. Kroenke also owns a number of American Sports franchise that are performing very well. Just in case we need a reminder:
Owner of the LA Rams- NFL Team who just won the coveted Superbowl title in February this year which was hosted in his new £5.5bn “state-of-the-art” Stadium,
Owner of the Denver Nuggets – NBA Team, currently positioned 6th place in the Western Conference division and sitting in a playoff spot,
Owner of the Colorado Avalanche – NHL Team, currently leading the Central division in points with the best overall record in the entire national hockey league,
Owner of the Colorado Rapids – MLS (Major League Soccer) currently sitting in 9th place out of 14 in their division from 6 games with 28 games remaining, and…
Owner of the Colorado Mammoth – NLL (National Lacrosse League) currently sitting in 1st place in their division.
Owner of Arsenal Football Club – estimated valuation of £2.8bn by Forbes April 2021….
I highlighted the other professional sports franchises/teams owned by Mr. Kroenke of Kroenke Sports and Entertainment (KSE) so that we Arsenal fans can see the big picture and maybe see where our beloved Arsenal FC fits into Mr. Kroenke’s scheme of things.
Do you think Arsenal FC is a top priority to the owner and for it to succeed? What is the owner’s real ambitions for the club?
In closing, I want to share my thoughts with you and my reasons.
I feel Arsenal FC is not a top priority for Mr. Kroenke as his LA Rams and Colorado Avalanche are higher priorities. Why? Mr. Kroenke is American and loves American sports more.
Maybe there might be a parallel between his middle-of-the-table Colorado Rapids MLS team and our beloved Arsenal. Who knows?
I feel Arteta is not the best Manager for Arsenal FC if the club is to routinely challenge for the league titles, the top 4 and domestic trophies going forward. Why? Mr. Arteta lacks experience and has never done it before. Arsenal is a BIG club and needs an ELITE Manager to succeed going forward.
I feel the owners will not sack Arteta even if we finish outside the Top 4. Why? Arsenal FC is not their TOP priority unfortunately.
In my opinion, the owner will be satisfied with a Top 6 finish and Arteta will remain in charge to continue with his “PROJECT” ….
Cheers,
Larry J Dunlop
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