There are a large portion of Arsenal fans that are very unhappy that the Gunners have made Mikel Arteta the hot favourite to succeed Arsene Wenger, and these naysayers are quietly hoping that the persistent rumours about Pep Guardiola’s assistant are simply a smokescreen before they announce their main target of Max Allegri.
These fans were given hope yesterday when the BBC man David Ornstein said: “Arteta is the frontrunner – he wants the job and there is a feeling among staff that he is set to get it – but while it would seem Vieira has drifted out of contention, whispers persist that Allegri remains in the mix.”
Well I can’t see where these “whispers” are coming from as Allegri has already made it clear that he would only leave Juventus if he is sacked, which is hardly likely considering he has just notched up a hat-trick of League and Cup doubles in Serie A.
Yet again, yesterday Allegri was preparing for Juventus’ last game of the season where they will be parading the Serie A trophy, and he made it clear that he will very quickly start preparing for another title tilt next season. “The probability of me staying is very high,” he said. “Next week, I’ll meet with the club as we start to make the team competitive again, just like every other year.
“Next year will be even more difficult and we need to keep raising our game. It’s in Juve’s DNA to be competitive on all fronts.
“I am happy at Juventus and I have an excellent relationship with the club.”
I think it is time to stop wishing that the Arsenal Board can entice the Italian to change his mind after that clear snub. We will have to start pinning hopes on someone else if we still don’t want Arteta.
Darren N