We all know and appreciate the brilliant job that Arsene Wenger did in keeping Arsenal in the top four and always earning us a place in the Champions League group stage for the 10 years or so that he had to run the club on very little money for transfer fees and wages.
And the fact that these years also saw a massive rise in the spending power of our Premier League rivals, especially Man City and Chelsea, made the prof’s achievement even more remarkable. But the praise the Frenchman rightly got for that no longer butters any parsnips with the Arsenal fans.
We want Wenger to change his ways and not just to make another big signing like the recent transfers of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil. We need more than that and the fact that Arsenal Football Club have something like £200 million gathering dust in the bank makes Wenger’s decision to only sign Petr Cech in the summer and Mohamed Elneny in the January transfer window even harder for us to take.
At least Wenger seems to be getting it and in comments reported by The Mirror he suggested that the price of players would not be an obstacle for the Gunners at the end of this current season. Whether that means we will get the top players we want, however, is another matter, as it also sounds as though Wenger might have other reasons for not getting the best players to north London.
He said, “Top four is not Champions League. Top three, yes. That’s why it is important. What has changed is just because we want to play against the top teams and we want to be in the Champions League.
“What has changed over the years is that the impact of the finances in the CL is not as big any more. For a period in the past the money was vital for us. But the sporting impact, the planning of the next season, of course it changes completely.
“Especially when you have a big summer tournament like the Euros which is now like a World Cup because it starts on June 10 and finishes on the 10th of July. When you have to play Champions League qualifiers the European Championship is still going on.”
So is he really saying that Arsenal will spend big on transfers or is he getting us ready for them not doing if we only finish fourth or below?