Arsenal were left facing the facts yesterday that once again they have finished a season having massively underachieved from what is expected of them and on this occasion they couldn’t even achieve the consistent top four slot that they’ve held down for the past twenty years. Everyone at Arsenal from the management to the staff will be deeply disappointed to have missed out, but unsurprisingly there is one or two that still maintain the odd view that this team is capable of winning the biggest of competitions.
Unfortunately for the Arsenal fans, one of those members who shares such a view actually happens to be our current manager Arsene Wenger, the main man who can actually see change amongst the squad. Wenger unfortunately still has his view that this squad is capable of winning major honours and that like every year ‘we are just one or two signings’ behind the winners of this year’s major competitions.
On the matter, Wenger is quoted saying: ‘They have learned a lot and they have gone through difficult periods this season and they have bounced back in a very strong way. I think that will help them, absolutely, next season.
But first I think we have to keep 90 per cent of these players together and find one or two more who strengthen the group but we don’t need a lot. We don’t need many. But we need maybe top quality.’
I completely agree that this squad, the spine of the team, ie the starting eleven must remain at Arsenal, especially our most influential players such as Koscielny, Ozil and Alexis. There are of course numerous other names that will be on such list but I think it’s also vital that the mediocre players and ‘deadwood’ players are shipped out of the club and replaced with the highest quality we can attract.
The issue we have this summer is that of course we will not be playing in Europe’s biggest club competition next season and thus we may find it difficult recruiting the quality of players we require. Premier League winners Chelsea and Champions League teams Spurs and City have the advantage now, with things like heritage, history and of course the reputation of Arsene Wenger no longer having the meaning it once did.
Furthermore, if we are just one or two players away from success, or at least challenging for the league, then why has Wenger been saying this for the last few years at least, with pretty much no improved results. We have pushed for the league on a few occasions over the past couple of years, but never consistently for the entirety of the whole campaign. Perhaps Wenger thinks he is capable of leading this current squad to success with the addition of one or two star signings, but I think in reality that’s proving to be much easier said than done.
By AH