Monday, August 25, 2008

AWAY WITH ARSENE WENGER

About a decade ago, a not so wise Englishman by the name of Alan Hansen wrote a book by the title: 'You'll win nothing with kids', in reference to the ManU side of Giggs, Scholes, Beckham and the Neville brothers. The same side that went ahead to win the double in the same year that Hansen's book was published. There was some merit in Hansen's argument, however he overlooked the other major factor of whose hands were tutoring these 'kids'. Sir Alex Ferguson was that factor. If Hansen's book was published today and if the subject of his thesis was Arsene Wenger's current gunners squad, then his book would have been a best seller. Unlike his ManU nemesis, Wenger has failed (so far) to deliver titles with his youthful side.

Not only has he failed to add to our trophy chest, he has driven many arsenal fans to apathy. I recently overheard a local gunner bemoaning the state of affairs at Emirates. He tickled me when he suggested that someone should compose a Wenger dis song similiar to the kind that local hip hop artists (Bamboo & co.) were famous for. For a team that boasts a global fan base, Wenger's failure is just totally unacceptable. To his credit, he has done well in balancing the books, but for me (and i believe most Arsenal fans) a tidy balance sheet is the least of my concerns. What good is that cash when we cant show anything for it. The fans aren't the only ones suffering, the players too must be beginning to feel it. I wonder how it must feel for Arsenal players, to be part of a squad that no player worth his salt is dying to join! Over the past two or so months we have been treated to the drama of Christiano Ronaldo and his quest to Join his dream team (Real Madrid). Others like Robinho are even toying with the possibility of forking a whooping 45 million Euros to buy out his contract in his quest to join Chelsea. Strong words/phrases like 'modern-day slavery' were even used to describe the difficult place that these players found themselves in. Yet in all this there was no mention of a similar desire to move to Emirates, on the contrary our more ambitious players (like Adebayo) were crafting an exit plan or should i call it retirement plan.

English clubs baffle me by their patience. How does a major club keep the same coach for 12 seasons when all he has to show for his fat pay cheque is a paltry 3 premierships and zero European glory. I think it boils down to lack of ambition. Why cant Arsenal do a 'capello' on Wenger, the way Real did two seasons ago? Trust me, Chelsea got it right when they showed the door to Avram Grant. Second place was not good enough for Roman Abromovich. As they say, 'second place is no place'. What I cant understand is why the club owners are so content with 3rd , 4th...Nth place. Wenger must be sacked. Arsenal needs new thinking and the only way that we can move forward is by doing away with the negative and unambitious ways of Wenger. You cannot boast of having money yet not see the need of spending it to improve your lot. He is a f***ing miser who has no place in modern football.

2 comments:

De' Stefano said...

Incidently, I too overheard a couple of Arsenal fans bemoaning the depth into which their team has sunk after that match against Fulham. And from what I heard it seems like not one single player in the team currently inspires the fans (there is really nothing much to choose between hated captain Gallas, the 'one footed' Van Persie or the wasteful strike pair of Adebayor and Bendtner). At this rate Arsenal is not only going to inherit the 'most hated team' tag from Chelsea, but they will soon become the 'only team by their fans'. I watched their first game against West Brom and the only thing that struck about the team was the way they seemed content with wasting chance after chance. My take? Its time for change. Arsenal should look beyond Arsene Wenger (now)- before the poor fellow outlives his usefulness. Period.

Anonymous said...

IN ARSEN WE TRUST!!! Wenger is wise he is not buying players coz he thinks there is talent in the current squad. Take for instance, flaminis replacement could have been signed a long time ago because money was not an issue. But the boss has confidence in Diaby and denilson who i think if given a chance can be as good as flamini, viera the works. Thats the difference between ARSENAL and other teams. We give a chance to the least expected. On the brighter side, I have faith on our current squad and i believe they will lead us to victory this season !

Kivbutt - Gunner for life!