As if there was not already more than enough pressure on Arsene Wenger and the Arsenal team going in to an FA cup quarter-final, our relatively poor away form and Manchester United´s good home form are making the game look a really tricky obstacle.
So the last thing the Arsenal boss wants to hear is that his job could be on the line as well. But that is what the former Arsenal and England midfielder Paul Merson has claimed in a report by the Daily Star.
The football pundit even thinks that another FA cup triumph at Wembley may not be enough to save Wenger´s Arsenal career if he fails to finish in the top four for the first time in 17 years. So Merson believes that the pressure is really on both Wenger and his opposite number Louis van Gaal to deliver a win tonight, or at the very least to not lose.
The former Gunner wrote, “Whichever manager loses out when Manchester United and Arsenal clash in their FA Cup quarter-final will be under severe pressure.
“Whoever goes out of the cup will just be playing for the top four – and neither team is guaranteed to finish in there this season.
“You can’t tell me that either of those managers will still be in a job next season if they go out of the cup and don’t finish in the top four.
“Van Gaal has spent a fortune and has to qualify for the Champions League. Winning the FA Cup might save him. Not doing either? It’s goodbye.
“But I don’t think winning the FA Cup would be enough to save Wenger if they don’t finish in the top four again.
“Arsenal have qualified for the Champions League for so many years in a row that it would be a disaster if they missed out now.
“I’m not saying they’d sack him, but they would pull him aside and ask him to resign.”
No pressure Arsene. However, at least Merson does give the Gunners a good chance of turning over a poor United side he thinks are playing badly and heading for a good hiding at some point. He backs Olivier Giroud to have a field day against the United defence, while none of United´s big money signings have delivered.
So maybe Wenger has no need to worry after all.
Wenger resigning, highly doubt it. But you’re definitely right. Winning the UCL and the premier league now are a long shot and without the FA Cup, all we have to look forward to is next season. No Gooner will be happy with that.
So let’s go to the OT tonight and defend our title. And hey who knows… Our chances might be .000001%, but maybe we could win the UCL or the premier league this season too.
I just hope our lads won’t get there and submissively bend over some for some “ass-spanks”.
our chances at OT are NOT 0.00001% – r u kidding?? MU playing like sh*te. many teams have defeated them this year. we need to become one of those. + we dont have to win: if we cant win, we should draw and bring it back to the emirates. but i think we can win it at OT. AW should probably get henry to give the pump-up speech this time.
Man, we beat City, MUFCkers should be exception, but they’ve often exceptionally beaten us.
Let’s just hope we kick them out.
I said winning UCL or the Premier league is .000001%, ffs we SHOULD beat Man U tonight
Wow.. Since when is every gooner unhappy with finishing fourth? If that was the case, we’d have sacked Wenger a long time ago. That is the problem. We are happy with fourth. As for the FA cup, if united score we will be out. We have a psychological problem against them. United always feel like they can beat us and they often do. We have a lot of players with a point to prove. Giroud, Ozil, Welbeck. Will they start ? You bet! Will they deliver ? Hardly. It’ll be a scrappy game. I think if we don’t concede we will have a chance, but with Sczezny in goal i’m not feeling to comfortable. We need to put players who are not affected by the United syndrome like Wenger. We must take the game in and hit them on the break.
Sadly if i’m realistic, i see a 1-0 home win…
@Mesut O-healed
“our chances .000001%” – Maybe under SAF, yeah….but with LVG, we have a good chance of wining, esp if he opts for the 3 at back and we opt for fast wingers (Walcott & alexis to start)..
you are still living in denial….we can even beat them at home under LVG….
and we cant even beat them under Moyes….
Wenger has said we are going to attack…which means its the same old tactic…..
theres no way we are gona win with the same old tactic and strategy
BS: all streaks finish. we just need to concentrate from 1st min to min 90 [no conceding in first 20 mins or last 5 mins]. if we do our best we can beat them. thats all we can control. i’ve watched HUGE upsets in my life: if AFC beats MU , it wont be the biggest one so it definitely can be done. what i dont like is lack of effort: sanchez, ozil, roziscky, cazorla: these guys can get it done. the weak point to me is wenger transmitting fear to the players instead of delivering the rah-rah speech that we know he cannot do. but maybe henry will do it.
I can’t wait till you eat a slice of humble pie after tonight’s match.
Seriously, why not at least say “We can’t win, but I HOPE WE WIN anyway”
That at least shows you care about Arsenal
you guys I was talking about winning the UCL or the Premier league, not about the game tonight.
We are like the Bayern Munich of the FA Cup. Time for utd to say goodbye to their FA Cup dream.
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i think Wenger is here to stay, can’t see the board sacking him cos he makes lots of money to them, anyway we are going to wembley, mark my words…
I don’t think tonight’s game will cost wenger his job but at the last home game against Everton somebody told me that stan kronkies son was at the game to have a meeting with wenger after it . How true that is I’ don’t really no.But I do fancy us to beat the mancs tonight and the winner of our game will probably go on to lift the trophy in May
2-2
A nail biting evening awaits!
There is real pressure for AW now! Being only 10 on this list from his work in the first decade at AFC does not help his cause now.
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The only manager of a top club to get spanked 8 – 2 at old trafford and still retain his job.
Suck it up coz Wenger aint going nowhere!
I seriously doubt that.
He has got the job for two more seasons. The board is scared of life without Wenger and at least will never sack an Arsenal legend. Maybe they will not renew his contract in two years but not before