The Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has been widely criticised in the past, especially in recent seasons, for leaving it too late to make moves in the transfer market and in some cases, not making moves at all. This trend has more often than not resulted in the Gunners having a patchy start to the campaign, as was the case last season when an Arsenal side with no defence lost at home to Liverpool in the season-opener.
But this time around, it seems as though the much-criticised Frenhman has learned his lesson and is willing to get his transfer deals done before the start of pre-season. After the capture of Sead Kolasinac on a free transfer from Schalke, Arsenal’s veteran manager is understood to be working on a raid of Ligue 1, with Kylian Mbappe, Thomas Lemar and Alexandre Lacazette all being linked with a move to the Emirates and Wenger has now claimed he is working ’24 hours a day’ to make things happen.
“Between now and the tour we will work every day to get the best possible environment around the team and to strengthen the team. That’s basically a lot of dark, invisible work”, Wenger said on Arsenal.com.
He continued: “But that is demanded and that means never leave your seat without your phone, never go to bed without your phone, because anything can happen. We will basically be on alert 24 hours a day.”
Looking at what Wenger has had to say and the kind of players Arsenal are being linked with, I am prepared to go out on a limb and believe that something is really different about the club’s approach to this transfer window. While it certainly is too early to be too confident, the initial signs seem good considering that the Gunners have already signed the best left-back in the Bundesliga and credible sources like Sky stating that Arsenal are indeed offering big money for top-quality players. Wenger does seem to be launching a charm offensive to try and get the fans back on his side before the new season, and to get a few top-class players in early will go a long way to achieving that goal.
Personally, I have never doubted the Frenchman’s commitment. The problem is his stubbornness in not abandoning a philosophy that is clearly outdated. But with Le Prof now working harder than ever and finally looking like he is willing to splash the cash in order to win the title, perhaps Arsenal fans can all finally forget the past and get behind the team.
Does Wenger finally mean business?