The Sanchez saga has been dragging on for so long and the earlier Arsenal get it sorted out, the better. No player is bigger than a club; no player can hold a club to ransom. No matter how big a star you think you are, always remember that if the football had not given you a platform to express your skills, you would never have become a star player! Sanchez needs to be settled now before our season explodes further.
When Arsenal started new contract negotiations with Sanchez and Ozil, it was seen to be a good move in the right direction. This is what shows seriousness on the side of a club. No club wants to lose its star player and that is why when the contract of its star player is about winding down, it starts negotiations for a new contract as soon as possible. Arsenal showed ambition in re-negotiating but what did the players do? They held the club to ransom.
Although Ozil has not signed a new contract, his own situation is not as delicate as that of Sanchez. I strongly believe Ozil will remain an Arsenal player at the start of next season. But as far as I am concerned, Sanchez is no longer an Arsenal player. It may sound stupid seeing Wenger starting Sanchez from the bench against Liverpool but then, he was only showing Sanchez who the boss was. Sanchez has caused a lot of distractions in the club, even the team captain Mertesacker, made mention of such. Sanchez’s case should have done and dusted with a long time ago! If Alex Ferguson was our coach, I am sure we would have settled this case a long time ago.
In a game against Real Madrid in the Champion’s league some four years ago, Ferguson kept Rooney on the bench and the world did not end. Rooney had contractual issues with Man united then and Ferguson was definitely not pleased with the distractions it was causing the team. He had to make decisions for the benefit of the team and he did. So, why the fury over Wenger benching Sanchez? I know the fans are not impressed with Wenger but then, we need to reason along with him. Before the game, there were rumours of a training bust-up between Sanchez and his team mates. No coach wants to supervise a divided team and Wenger had to take actions.
Is it not better we start showing him we can play without him? He has become and unwanted distraction to the team and I feel this problem should be nipped in the bud before other players are tempted to revolt, (It was obvious Gabriel was not in the mood to joke with him when Sanchez tried joking with him in the game against Liverpool). He has allowed his sulking and complaints to get to the team and I am against it. I know I wrote an open letter to him some weeks ago asking him not to leave Arsenal, but now I am forced to ask him to either take a final decision now or leave us in peace! Arsenal won’t stop being Arsenal if he decides to go, or will it? Is Sanchez not becoming a pain in our necks?
Sylvester
Too little, too late. It doesn’t even matter now. I want to hear from the club this morning that there is a plan. I want to hear if Wenger signs extension or not. That’s what I want to hear. I don’t care which is it but it is becoming ridiculous for Wenger this time to keep the club to a ransom.
I agree Budd. I would prefer a new start with a new manager but if Wenger intends to stay it would still be better for him to come out and say that. The uncertainty is killing the club. His loyal guard (Ramsey, Theo, Giroud, Kos) would likely rally behind him if he announces he will stay for another two years. The clarity must help some of the squad. The uncertainty is ruining the club.
Obviously, if he announces he will leave this would get all the fans of his back, in fact, I think he would get a lot of support of the Wenger out fans if he announces his departure.
Allianz Arena
.
Bayern Munich v. Arsenal…..5:1
.
*Two weeks later*
.
Emirate Stadium
.
Arsenal v. Bayern Munich….. Hol’ up. Ctrl+C….Ctrl+
V……Yeah….Done…… 1:5
*
Class is dismissed.
That’s how easy we’ve become
To: All those who don’t mind whether Arsene stays on or not, but are more upset by the uncertainty of Wenger not making his intentions clear:
Are you serious !!!
(for the record Arsene is gagging to sign the new contract and is just waiting for Arsenal to win 2 games in a row, Lincoln and AN Other would do nicely. Then the talk will turn to the semi final of FA Cup, the fourth rate Trophy still being within our grasp and taking the club to the next level and signing on the dotted line etc. Gazidis will emerge on cue to talk about the war fund for transfers – while ignoring our failure to pay our top players top rates – to keep season tickets in demand and the band plays on, which includes paying the biggest dope of a manager imaginable a king’s ransom to destroy the club.)
Meanwhile back in the real world Arsenal are a joke!
Last time round he waited til the league finished didn’t he. We won the FA cup that time so he’s probably hoping for the same thing. I’d like to see him leave on a high no matter what people think of the tournament. Because when people look back it will be remembered allot better with cups to his name, and he the most successful ever manager of the tournament.
Keep Alexis whatever the cost and get rid of Wenger. Maybe new manager can persuade him to stay.
In Alexis we trust. In Wenger we rust.
Tortuous times for gunners fans,but there’s more pain to come,another transfer window under Wenger, and this one is going to be the mother of all atrocious transfer windows. Lose 2 of our best players,sign one average player to get season tickets renewed,and we are good for another typical season.
To me, Sanchez is a side issue. Sanchez is also an issue of Wenger’s making. Before the ridiculous decision to leave him out at Liverpool for what Wenger claimed were tactical reasons Sanchez was not such a big issue.
Sure, Sanchez displays his frustration but that could and was previously ascribed to his fiercely competitive nature. By leaving him out Wenger put the focus of the whole world on Sanchez who is now being over analyzed in my book.
We knew last year he was not going to sign a new contract. He rightly or wrongly thinks he can earn more than the 180 per week Wenger is offering him (there are quite a few players earning considerably more than the 180 per week including Rooney and Aguero not to speak of Ibra and Pogba). But what he has shown game after game, is that he shows up and fights despite every single game despite knowing he will leave. Embarrassing him publicly by leaving him out against Liverpool was provocative yet he still came out with a statement of support about his love for the “club”.
Now he is being analyzed for his every action. This is dumb IMO.
The real issue is Wenger and the fact that the whole team has lost the plot. Anyone could have predicted that the uncertainty over the future of Wenger, Ozil and Sanchez had the potential to become a big cloud hanging over the club especially if results would drop which they do every February.
One solution IMO, would have been to sign both Ozil and Sanchez to 250 contracts last November when we were still in with a shout. There would have been nothing preventing us from selling both of them this summer if we wanted and for a lot more money than we will get now since we have maneuvered ourselves in a position of weakness with their contracts running out.
The Alexis issue will die down and blow over the Wenger issue will not go without interference from the top. We saw what this team looks like without Alexis in the first half against Liverpool removing him from the team would be dumb if we want to have the smallest chance to finish in the top 4.
The situation needs to managed but can Wenger manage it?
I agree with everything you have said apart from Ozil. He is not worth 250k a week. Hell, he is even not worth his current 140k a week. If there is someone I would love for the chinese to come for it must be Ozil. He is the root of all our problems. Cazorla should never have been displaced for him.
I actually agree with you. You never know what a new manager could do with Ozil but he has been disappointing.
This article is absolutely spot on, I said the same thing weeks ago and all I got was thumbed down. There’s blame on both sides but as good a player as he is it is a distracting situation. Arsenal football club will still go on without Sanchez whose performances in the last few months are hardly befitting a world class player.
yes he will go and we’ll keep the average players and the clueless manager for some more years.. what do you think we gonna be fightingfor? 4th as usual
To begin with stop putting Ozil on par with Sanchez because he is a waste of money. You can see that Sanchez does not trust any of the other players and that is why he is running all over the place and avoids passing which results in mistakes.
Once wenger is gone we need to make sure gazidis and then kroenke are also gone. That will be the hard part because we need more than just a small demonstration to get rid of those two.
Last 16 ECL and top 4 is the pass mark
for the owner board manager players
sponsors and 90% of the Arsenal fans.
So last 16 ECL receives a big tick.
If Arsenal make top 4 which I believe Arsenal will quite easily achieve
considering our soft last 12 EPL games then Wenger will get a contract extension.
FA cup semi final at Wembley only makes things better.
Only by losing to Lincoln or missing out on top 4 would we see the gaffer step down.
Two more years …
I don’t think even missing out on the top 4 will make Wenger quit. He will just say he has the “strength and experience to come back from this”. Man why can’t people open their eyes and see this man is psychotic! He gave up his marriage and family to remain in power! He is sick! He is a sick man, man!
I don’t think we’ll make the top 4 this year. We still have;
Man City (Home)
Spurs (Away)
Man Utd (Home)
Everton (Home)
How many points do you expect us to get from that lot going on current form?
and for this squad, you might as well add Southampton and West Brom as difficult games.
Wenger or the board etc need to be careful they don’t end up with a player mutiny on their hands.
Sanchez is as frustrated as those of us who believe Arsenal lack grit and a winning mentality.
Whatever happens with Sanchez it has to be the best deal for Arsenal, not Wenger..
It’s a tough one because Sanchez plays with a passion and commitment that we can only dream about in most of the squad. But he’s not a leader – a leader wouldn’t go against the manager’s game plan like I believe he did in the first Bayern game. And this club needs leaders. Still, I’d like to see him stay as his positives will clearly outweigh his negatives with the right manager but not Wenger. The difference between Fergie and Rooney situation is that Fergie made it clear why he was benching Rooney. By contrast Wenger goes out of his way to shield Sanchez by making up some laughable story about a strategic decision to be more direct. No accountability anywhere.
Its funny we are bashing sanchez and we decide to praise Wenger. The root of all problems is wenger and from everyone he has become bigger then the club. Mind i say he is even saying ludicrous statements like i built the club!!! Seriously!! When a decision is left to someone to decide when to step down that just shows how arsene has becone bigger than arsenal. I will not blame sanchez my reason is this , we don’t know the goal wenger set for the squad and him? Maybe he told players pl is our target. Imagine how many games we hve lost due to naivety of wenger and poor tactics. Even small kids can see this then imagine how the players themselves feel?
English Class
Teacher: who can tell us a story with the title ” once bitten twice shy”?
Me: teacher me! Teacher me!
Teacher: okay Guneal go ahead, tell us.
Me: once upon a time about two weeks ago in Germany arsenal were bitten 5-1. When the score was 1-1 koscielny left the pitch (shy guy) Yesterday in London, Arsenal got the same bite, 1-5 and koscielny was shy again so he left the pitch while the score was 1-1.
Arsenal was bitten once and Koscielny was shy twice at 1-1.
Teacher: awesome! Clap him!
Instead I got a standing ovation from my class mates.
No if the players,former players the board and over half the fanbase support a specialist in failure,then you know what you’ve become.A FAILING CLUB.You’ll have to let those with the strength and amplitude of being able to live with everything that is going around the club do as they wish.We predict for change but change might not come for a long time.Wenger might not leave unless he is forced to.But the protess for change are weak and the board members are fine with his achievements
I
I think all arsenal fans lack winning mentality. Explains why we hve entertained mediocrity for so long. What will break my heart even more is that we might win 2 games in a row and only one arsene wenger will be back. Lets save our club. Hehe sometimes i feel its spuds fans envading our stadium and sing that
groundhog year at AFC.
when is he signing the new contract?
Since the team has dropped form and found themselves in a bad situation Sanchez has become poison to the team. We don’t play the way we used to play when he plays, everyone scared of him giving him the ball then he just tries takes on the whole team which has knocked the confidence of the team. Arsenal are missing leaders and a proper captain on the pitch Wengers plan has failed and he has not evolved
Both Sanchez and Wenger should leave. Wenger’s game plan is ridiculous to me while Sanchez is acting in an unprofessional manner. So both of them should go and Arsenal in peace
Putting your best player and a ‘specialist in failure’ of a manager in the same bracket is hard to understand.
The clash between Sanchez and Wenger is (not a personality clash but) one between a winner and a loser.
Arsenalfan1 spot on! How truly ungrateful this fake fans are becoming now blaming Alexis for the decline of the team so does the freaky media. people who write this crap “Arsenal won’t stop being Arsenal if he decides to go, or will it? Is Sanchez not becoming a pain in our necks? ” COME ON! you are part of the losers side. the guy is a born winner. he got fighters in the chilean and barcelona team and won trophies.mention one in the Arsenal team who has shown guts or guile apart from Ox lately? NONE. so, if the guy rants in the pitch and push forward..it is because HE CARES, HE WANTS TO WIN. You trolls pin point Ozil for the lack of it and now you want to make ALEXIS THE SCAPEGOAT OF OUR FAILURE? pictures of him laughing? ARE YOU FREAKING SERIOUS? dishonest, disgraceful and disrespectful of a guy WHO HAS SCORE HALF OF OUR TALL and If it is not cos of him we would be middle table battling with stoke city top 10. respect IS own. DIVERTING THE ISSUE FROM THE SPECIALIST ON FAILURE ? Put another 3 world class players next to Alexis and Ozil and we are talking about title contenders not PUSSY CAT DOLLS. STOP THE TROLLING AND INNUENDOS TOWARDS A GUY WHO GIVES EVERY SINGLE BIT OF SWEAT ON THE PITCH..lately do not give a damn cos the rest DO NOT DO IT. let’s see you all next season when he is GONE! i want to come out and defend Wenger.
Wenger is the distraction..!!
Of course it’s a distraction!
Seeing him sitting on the bench smirking and trying to involve his teammates (Cech and Gabriel) was contemptible.
How do you think the other players will react to his behaviour. If I was Wenger I’d come out in the open and publicly condemn him, you can’t have any employee, in any business treating their employer or colleagues in such a contemptuous way without censure.
If he wants to leave, say so, and go, I have no time for spoilt brats spitting their dummies out, and trying to involve others in their stupidity or games.
Bravo, Sylvester. A very thorough and thoughtful post. I love Alexis, I really do. I want him to stay, and retire an Arsenal legend. However, he’s behaving extremely childish and unprofessional as of late towards the manager, the club, his teammates, and also us, the fans. He must have forgotten who gave him the chance and opportunity to be what he is today – a star player. He always played second fiddle to Di Natale, and then Messi and Company. It was Wenger who recognized that talent, and molded him into one of the most unstoppable and feared strikers not just in the league, but in the world. But lately his body language, his smirks, and his laughs have become unacceptable, and I think Wenger did the right thing by benching him against Liverpool, and then again substituting early in the game last night against Bayern. If Sanchez had already made up his mind about leaving (don’t forget he spent 3 years each at both Udinese, and Barca before joining us), and I think he did, then he should do the right thing by playing like a true professional until the end of the season. After that, acknowledge everyone who have loved and adored you throughout your Arsenal career, say your goodbyes, and be on your way.
@Vlad – are you putting me on? The guy was embarrassed in front of the whole world at Liverpool, yet he still comes on after half time and personally drags us back into the game.
Nobody can accuse Sanchez of not giving 100% and you criticize him for his body language and smirks????????? and they are unacceptable????? The mind boggles.
We will not see an other player as talented and as committed to winning as Sanchez as long as Wenger is around.
Just replied below…
And Yes, I’m going criticize him for his body language, because it’s in very poor taste to be sitting and laughing on the bench when your team is losing, and such fashion… and it’s not just that… Swansea game comes to mind. We’re up 4-0, he scored his goal, gets substituted, and then sits and sulks on the bench like a spoiled little brat. Unacceptable, in my humble opinion. That’s disrespectful to the club, the manager, and your teammates. Not to mention it looks ridiculous to fans, even of other teams. My mate, a Pool fan asked me about it, and said “What’s up with Alexis?”. I had nothing to say back to him because I was speechless to see such behavior from someone who is our main guy.
Sanchez is ONE player. Arsenal is a football CLUB. And as far as I remember football is still a team sport. And Wenger, love him or hate him, is still Arsenal’s manager and has the authority to play or bench the players. There you have it in a nutshell.