The short answer is no, in fact, it could have ended up doing more harm than good.
That is not to denigrate the campaign, we supported the statement but in hindsight, I feel it was done too soon and for the wrong reasons.
It is fairly clear that discussions to sign Pepe were ongoing at the time of that statement and it would have been no surprise if the 24-year-old or his representatives walked away feeling that the club was dysfunctional.
I do not believe that the #WeCareDoYou campaign can take any credit for what the club has been doing. Josh Kroenke made it clear at the time that we should be excited and he was right, Unai Emery said there would be a big name coming in and he was right.
If you take a step backwards and look at the situation at the time you could see that the club was making significant changes, it was developing a vision and a strategy but their lack of communication and the impatience of the fans made for a combustible mixture that resulted in that stinging statement.
The whole hierarchy of the club has been changed, we all knew that, the technical side, backroom staff etc. was all undergoing an overhaul, we all saw that as well.
And yet, the frustration from the fans was growing fast even when the club was telling us to be patient.
What the #WeCareDoYou campaign showed was a club at war with itself and fans that despised the owner but worst of all, it showed a significant core of the fanbase either refused to acknowledge or were unable to comprehend the changes that were taking place right under their noses.
Timing is everything and on this occasion, the #WeCareDoYou timing was off and I know they are claiming some sort of credit for what has happened over the last week but I am sorry, I simply do not see it in the same way.
I don’t believe that, no.
I believe that the new management structure, a more hands on approach by Josh, the loss of Wenger and Gazidis and the Kroenke’s now having full control of the club are the main reasons behind this transfer window.
This is our first full summer with all of the above in place and in my opinion it bodes well for the future. Especially if we begin selling well, the amount of money we have last on not managing players contracts and outgoing transfers is criminal!
Well after Pepe signing, I can’t blame Kroenke anymore. Still can’t stand him but he isn’t cheap as I thought
Arsenal’s net spend isn’t all that high, but good business with buying potential, loan and payment by instalments.
We should be hopeful, as there are still funds in the kitty.
It’s over. Most fans must have seen that the club are listening, proven by sacking the old management people and by getting pricey players
I didn’t expect to see Tierney, Ceballos and Pepe in one transfer window, but Kroenke surprised me again
Tierney isnt done yet
Agreed. The wheels were in motion for Pepe long before the campaign went public.
But the desire for action from the campaign comes from frustration from silent owners.
I hope now it is becoming clearer we have owners who are unlike that of Mike Ashley or Abramovich and Do Not need to be in the limelight making the Club about them…
Maybe David Dein was onto something….
A long way to go, we have yet to win the EPL under the current owners!
“Could of done more harm than good”??? 105,000 Arsenal supporters who signed it disagree with you.
And what does the remaining mult-million fans who didn’t sign say.
Very silly reply.
on the contrary the frustration came from flamdy excuses, overexpectation, failed promises among other, which fans experience in recent year.
I dont think ksf has anything to explain, in fact how many owners communicate fans on summer projects?
Now if arsenal do fail again this year….
You got emery to blame,, not the kroenkes
Gray, why don’t we leave the blame game to the end of the season.
If we get a CB he wants, it’s all on him.
We have already got a CB he wants before Kos moment of madness. I won’t be mad if we don’t get another one. Emery should shows us the coaching he said he is good at
OT
If Ozil being surrounded by Pepe, Aubameyang, Lacazette, Torreira, Ceballos can’t bring out the best of Ozil, nothing will!
If Ozil can replicate his 2015-2016 then all is forgiven
it can’t, Pepe wasn’t signed because of the petition the fans made.
I’ve said it before in one of the previous articles how I read the reason he accepted us and that the bid was already made before the AFCON kicked off, I think we all judged the board too quickly, including I myself, I’m a vocal critique.
We all chose to ignore it because we didn’t believe it, but it’s not our fault we didn’t believe it.
The bid for Pepe was made by Arsenal and other clubs before AFCON and that letter from the fans.
We saw the report but we swept it aside that it’ll never happen, I read so many people on here saying let’s not waste our time with such bullshít news because it’s not happening, we can’t spend that amount on a player from league 1.
Now in his first interview, even Pepe confirmed it when he pointed out the decision took long, he took his time to think about it while the AFCON was on.
It only came to the spotlight when he decided and Lille chose to confirm there were bids. Credit to the board, Credit to Josh Kroenke.
That #Be_excited wasn’t all PR talk or something that came up after the letter.
Hello Eddie, i remember asking for patience on several occasion and frankly speaking no one can blame any fan for been impatient, we have seen enough to be frustrated, we used to hear the popular lines such as ‘we tried to sign’, ‘we are working’, ‘when the right player avail’, etc.
I am somehow happy with the direct aproach of this new regime, maybe that was why i felt we were going to have a good summer despite early frustration.
During winter transfer, we were told, club couldnt afford to bring in any player, except loan deal, and towards end of last season Raul had and Interview and told us, they already decided on the players to buy with or without ucl participation.
I hope they continue to be open with us, when we cant/can buy, by this the trust and patience from fans, and of course harmony will come back
I think we all owe Stan an apology… You guys firsy
I apologise for calling him cheap but he’s still a bad human being in my opinion (how he treated Rick Ellis and his subsequent Suicide, taking the Rams to LA, his hunting record).
But thank him as an Arsenal fan for spending BIG
Check the net spend this season thus far; still enough for Tierney and a CB, probably Daniele Rugani on a two year loan with the option to buy. Buying Umtiti would be brilliant if Raul can get the right deal from Barcelona.
If these two (or being greedy three) signings come to fruition I would forgive Kroenke for the moment.
What I will never forgive him for is the forced purchase of the small shareholders’ shares. The majority of these shares had been passed down through the generations in families.
Dont be sentimental about the stock. Its business, its not as if they were forced to sell against their wil, isnt.
Majority of the shareholders have been around for decades with no intention of taking over. I dont really know much but i dont think its wrong, i will be willing to learn other reasons you think otherwise
Sorry, Adajim they were forced to sell, because the majority share holder Kroenke exerted the powers given to him under Corporations Law. He did not have to exert this right and force the minor shareholders to sell.
Maybe he could apologise to us from going from champions league contenders to playing Thursday night football.
Yes we have signed Pepe but the outlay this season for him is reported to be 20 million ,so credit should go to the negotiating team.
Stan is still holding the purse strings as we can see form our other signings this summer ,a kid from Brazil for 6 million and a loan player .
There is an awful long way to go and I’m just hoping Pepe can adapt this league and show us what we have been missing for a while ,and I’m hoping he lifts the rest of the players who have not been playing to there full potential.
I dont think anyone owe anyone an apology, fans were right to be angry (though some were extreme) and Kroenko has stated we are running self sustaining model, still with the signings so far, we are withing budget, he hasnt put or remove a penny. Our business so far has been on the experience and shrewd business of the guys in charge.
In the past, arsenal has been badly manage in an armateur way making self sustaining model look unrealistic but Raul and the team has open our eyes to a completely new world.
Its time to embrace change, its dawn of a new era
Nope, hatred of the owners is justified, and were definitely justified in the previous seasons. Arsenal’s lack of ambition has been under a microscope for ages. That hasn’t come out of nowhere.
It’s official… Bielik has departed. Shame… but life goes on. Good luck Krystian!
Goodluck to him, he wanted out, and got it. Everyone happy
Good luck Krystian Bielik at Derby. £10m good money, I just hope there is a buy back clause.
Tom, apparently no buy back clause, but Arsenal receive 35% of any transfer fee Derby County gets from his future transfer.
?
Oh please Raul make this a perfect window and use the money gotten from Bielik to complete Tierney deal and bonus CB Rugani.
But I won’t be mad if we don’t get them. I believe our attack has improved with Pépé and Ceballos high intensity and energy So that means more goals lesser pressure on our defense.
Hopefully Kolasinac, Monreal, Sokratis, Holding, Bellerin improves on their games.
It was probably already being worked on. I think years of pressure has resulted in Arsenal making big changes. Including AW leaving. And as much as many people hate AFTV on here, they have been a factor in that pressure. Which should not be let up now either. We want this club to be the best it can be. Hierarchy has to keep supporting that idea because it hasn’t seemed they are all in for ages.
?If Raul and Edu are able to secure
Tierney and a serviceable CB before
the window closes all Gunners
should be extremely excited and
optimistic about the present and
future of AFC.
WTS, how much money has Arsenal
actually spent this window?
Pepe (£20M)
Martinelli (£6M)
Ceballos (£3M)
Saliba (£?)
With the sales of Bielek, Ospina
and Asano (LOL) netting around £15M
there seems to be plenty of room in
the budget for Tierney and a CB.
What the Kroenkes dont understand is
THIS IS THE EXACT MOMENT when they
could forever change there legacy by
dipping into there substantial
pockets and allowing Raul and Edu to
hand pick one of D. Upamecano, I.
Kontae, J Tah, S Umtiti, A. Diallo,
M. Akanji, etc.
Upamecano, Tierney, Pepe, Ceballos,
Martinelli, and Saliba would be the
greatest transfer window in the
history of the club and immediately
elevate AFC back to its rightful
place amongst the elite in both the
EPL and Europe.
We are feeling a lot better with excitement just as Josh kronke promised us . Welcome to Arsenal Nicolas Pepe