Wenger must make an announcement now!
We often speak of players being able to put themselves into a position of command within the club, especially when it comes to contract negotiations. In the past members of the club would’ve been offered a deal and it would’ve been a take it or leave it matter. Now however it’s the players who are able to be in charge of negotiations and it’s players who make all the demands.
The exact same principle can be applied to Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, who currently holds the club exactly where he wants it. Wenger’s contract runs out in a matter of months and after 21 years with the club, it’s anticipated that this could be his final campaign. However Wenger has managed to get himself into a position where he calls all the shots, including on his own future, rather than have other managerial positions in the club make those decisions for him.
It has meant that currently, despite having the likes of a CEO, Chairman and Owner, it is in fact the first team manager who seems to hold all the power at Arsenal. Such a position has allowed Wenger to remain uncriticised by members of the board for so long and it’s the reason as to why he will never be fired, but rather have to offer his resignation in order to leave the Emirates.
It’s not a healthy position for the club to be in and it benefits Wenger more than anyone. Unfortunately however it comes with a cost as it means that it can only be down to the Frenchman to decide when enough is enough at Arsenal, and when he’s ready to let someone else have a go at managing the Gunners.
There’s been plenty of talk surrounding his statement which suggested he would be making an announcement on his future very soon; and this is largely because it’s been yet another couple of weeks and everyone is still in the dark as to whether Wenger will be staying or going in the summer.
Such uncertainty has caused an unreal amount of tension at the club, particularly between the players and the fans. However it seems that the reason as to why Wenger intends on remaining silent is because he doesn’t wish to risk damaging the moral within the squad. The issue however is that Wenger’s silence is actually causing a bad smell that will not go away in the dressing room, amongst the fans and in the media. As a result of this, Arsenal Ladies legend Kelly Smith has felt the need to have her say as to why Wenger’s silence is actually more damaging than he thinks.
In a BBC report, Smith is quoted as saying: “It’s quite hard being around the training ground because the tension is running very, very high just with the pure fact no-one knows whether Wenger is going or staying.”
“I think he needs to make a decision just for the pure love of the club. No manager is bigger than the club and I think Arsene Wenger is running the club at the minute. There’s nobody above him making the decisions.”
Smith could not be more correct in her statement, especially on two significant points. We, as fans, recognise that nobody is ever bigger than the club and players such as Van Persie, Nasri and Fabregas have all been shipped out at their own request after coming to blows with the football club. Arsene Wenger should not be exempt from that category, however he finds himself in a position of ultimate control. Any other ‘big side’ would have sacked their manager a long long time ago, especially after over a decade without a Premier League title. Wenger however has remained present throughout this success drought and the board needs to think long and hard at the fact that the situation we currently find ourselves in, is largely down to their inactions to make a change.
Secondly Arsene Wenger is known to have a passion for Arsenal. The boss has turned down several high profile jobs over the years to remain committed to Arsenal. So surely, with a such a devotion to the club, he is able to realistically recognise that he no longer inspires those that play for the team, nor those that support this club. If he truly has love for Arsenal as anything more than just a managerial job, then I think he has to realise that he’s taken the Gunners as far as he can and that change is drastically needed in the summer.
We need to hear an announcement about Wenger’s future very soon and depending on the result against Man City this weekend, the tension could rise to an all time high surrounding Wenger out!
By AH