Chelsea’s day-after thoughts: Why is it so hard to say we are not good enough?
Ten points out of twelve. That was my prediction from the so-called “four crucial games” which will come to an end on Wednesday when a confident Liverpool side will pay us a visit at the Emirates.
One point, one goal scored and five conceded.
I don’t know you but for me, this is depressing stuff. What really bothers me is that the fixture list, this season, was made just for us, yet we failed to take advantage and dropping silly points like the two away at West Ham didn’t make things easier.
The Better Team. Really?
According to Arsene Wenger, yesterday’s performance was a very good one, with Arsenal, it seems, unhappy with the defeat because “we felt we were the better team” he said. Back in November, after the Emirates defeat, he also said something similar and I have to confess such statements leave me wondering.
I mean, if we really were the better team in these two games against Chelsea but still lost 3-0 and 2-0, how many more goals we will concede the day we have a below-par performance against them?
My take on the game is that Chelsea did just what they had to do and had we scored one they would have stepped it up a gear to again have a two-goal cushion, simply because we are incredibly weak at the back and way too exposed to counter attacks.
Missing A Striker
Not long ago I was saying how this Arsenal team has to always make sure to score one more goal than the opposition, winning games 3-2, 4-3, you know, without ever enjoying a clear sheet. Mind you, this is not fantasy football considering our average goalkeeper and all the mistakes we make at the back and unfortunately, whilst the conceded goals came just as predicted, the goals from our team are lacking. Now I’m not saying we would have won, but had we had a pure striker, then I believe a draw would have been more than possible yesterday.
Speaking of strikers, hate him as much as you want, but Emmanuel Adebayor, a target man, was sold and we’re missing him. This is because for a reason which beats me, we kept on playing as if he’s still there, moving the ball around, shift the play on to the wings and then cross. But cross for who? Arshavin? Nasri? Fabregas?
You can’t keep on using a system which requires a strong and physical striker in the penalty area when the striker having these characteristics is gone. I smiled when Cesc fouled Drogba and told the referee, “Look at him. Now look at me. Do you really believe someone so big will go to ground after a challenge from someone so small?”
Yes Cesc, you are small, almost all those around you up front are and we have no one who can score. Andrey is not, Samir is not – he’s not even shooting actually – and Theo is not. Seriously, facing Chelsea, away from home, with a weak backline and a depleted forward line is suicidal.
Is It The Fear Of Losing Him That Is Keeping Wenger At Arsenal?
Whenever someone even hints at the idea of sacking Wenger, everyone turns pale and starts asking questions: Will Fabregas follow him on the way out? Will we ever be competitive again? What about the financial side of the club?
Sometimes I wonder if the fear of what may happen without him is really what is keeping the man at the club. I, personally, am one of those who simple cannot see Arsenal managed by a different boss and yes, also fully aware of the fact that Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie and others will ask for a transfer if Arsene is sacked or leaves.
But, and this is a big but, what if someone comes in and does better? During all the time we’ve been asking questions on how Arsenal would be without Wenger, no trophies were added to the trophy cabinet, instead we always saw a squad so close to perfection but never perfect because Arsene – a very stubborn man – prefers not to address two-three small tweaks which would turn us into a winning side.
The truth is that the best manager for Arsenal is a less-stubborn version of Arsene Wenger. If he changes his mentality, like for example bringing a new goalkeeper when he realises the one in goal is not good enough or signing a new striker when he understands that Nicklas Bendtner will not recover in time to face Manchester and Chelsea, then maybe we will again start dreaming of winning something.
Until he does, and there is no indication that he will in the near future, we will keep on asking questions, how it would be without him, how it would be if he was less stubborn and how it would be winning again.
Looking Forward
There’s very little to look forward to in terms of the Premiership. How long ago we were laughing at Liverpool for being out of the title race? Well if they manage to beat us on Wednesday, only two points will be dividing the two teams.
United are at Aston Villa and Chelsea at Everton. Who knows, maybe they will do us a favour and we’ll cut the gap to 6 or 7 points on Wednesday? Can’t really do it ourselves anymore, we were presented with the opportunity but now it’s gone.
See you for the preview on Wednesday morning. Until then, take care.
![[Video] Arsenal vs Porto: Match Video Highlights, including Nicklas’ hat-trick and Samir’s super goal!](http://www.thegunninghawk.com/wp-content/themes/arthemia-premium/scripts/timthumb.php?src=/wp-content/uploads/video.jpg&w=80&h=80&zc=1)
Hello , I am an arsenal fan from montreal , canada .
AW and the team need to be supported , there is no other choice . The team is young and mentally fragile , a good consistent support and within a year or two , this team will be very good . AW will eventually make some additions or changes .
Within a year or two , Chelsea will be older and the Ballack , Drogba will need viagra to keep up the runing with younger players and Abramovich will need to spend massively to rejuvenate his club , the same with Man UTD , in one word financial chaos .
So guys , cheer up , I guess fans are too impatient , we need one or two steps backward to have rational thinking .
You are correct, the team is young. Keep in mind that Arsenal has become more of an academy than a futbol club. Chelsea and ManU will spend money and buy new and experienced players. Arsenal on the other hand, will sell all the youngsters they have now, make a profit and raise new ones. Futbol is a business………the better the player gets, the more money he will then ask for. Outcome…………..we are where we are.
that’s only if the players dont leave. I hope they dont. but if arsenal keeps on playing games at this level, close to winning but never won… we shall see.
Of course players will leave. They get experience, make a name for themselves, get offered more money by other big clubs that are willing to spend and leave. Let’s face it, in the past couple of years Hleb, Flamini, Toure, Henry, Adebayor all got developed………all SOLD for a profit. Were they replaced? NO. Arshavin – great purchase, but not for a striker position. He is 172cm tall, Fabregas and Nasri all the same height. Eduardo…… I am surprised he is still playing after that injury. He will never play the same ways as he has before. It’s a mental block after such an injury. I am not saying this as a fan, I have played futbol my entire life since I was 3 years old and got paid for it. Van Persie………a world strike that cannot shoot with his right foot, and once again injured. Most likely, Fabregas will take the money and go to Baraca this Summer. Arshavin………he is not happy and keeps on saying he is not. He may leave as well. Almunia……..perfect goalkeeper for a any team in the middle of the table. The truth is, it takes time to develop any team, stars or not. At Arsenal, there are so many changes in their starting 11 every year, they will never have the time to click and develop together. Well, at least shareholders are happy.
this January transfer season was really quiet , not because there are no available players on the market , it is rather many clubs are financially tight or in trouble .
Coming summer it will be worst , players are not stupid , they will keep quiet and stay where they are .
How long abramovitch and the sheilks can keep throwing 100M by 100M out of the window , at some point they will understand their huge stupidity .
You are correct, many EPL clubs may be in trouble, but I promise you it will not stop any of the big clubs from splashing big money for big names. However, LaLiga is not in trouble and both Barca and Madrid will be delighted to spend any amount of money for good players. Keep in mind, many players in EPL would love to play in Spain. Two reasons alone ……. the weather, plus 25% tax on their wages vs. 50% in England.
Interesting comment stkpick101, its a different take on the role of Arsenal as a “selling” club.
So 5 years without a trophy is not patience enough for U ? It is people like U who only supported Arsenal because of AW. But let me remind you there was an Arsenal before Wenger and there will be one after Wenger.
All that needs to happen (though it never will) is to sack the board because they are just pocketing the money, and bring in a new owner and manager who are prepared to spend the club’ finances sensibly. Even the bible said U need to spend money to reinvest it and make more money. Arsenal charges the highest seats in the land – and for what ? to watch young inexperienced little boys get mashed on a football pitch? The fans pay for everything while greedy moneybags pocket the dough and AW gets his bonus. This has got to stop.
you suggest we bring in a sheik or a rich russian? seems to work other places. Money is everything nowadays. Anything can be bought, even trophies…
we have been there before fellow montreal gunner, with goals from adebayor, when we had him and van persie, we didn’t win no trophy, now without those strikers what were we really expecting? arsene just need to be reasonal sometimes, he can’t always be this stubborn and stupid, manu — rooney, berbatov, chelsea — drogba and anelka, liverpool – torres and dirk kurt even tottenham has a poacher like defoe. who does arsenal have upfront?
Most gunners understand that the team is young and needs time to mature. What i can’t understand is the fact that, when the players attain the required level “Mr Bin” always manages to let them go.
I am very confident that if we keep this current crop of players, and add a good goal keeper, a striker up front, and a Center Back, we can start reaping fruits from Mr Bin’s kinder garden. But if Mr Bin continues with this Obstinate, unrepentant, stubborn attitude,… we going to always be “…almost there”.
I belive silverware will come with more time for out team. However, one thing must stay the same. We have to KEEP this squad together. Hopefully, Fabregas wont go to Barcelona soon, and we will keep everyone else because my biggest fear is that we lose our top players, and rely even more on our young, untested youngsters.
Either Wenger admits his errors and becomes more flexible in his policies or he will lead us to another season of frustration next year, alienate the entire arsenal fan base, and eventually lose all of his prize players. Injuries and age cannot be our constant excuse.
A less stubborn Wenger would have splashed the cash and found us a tall striker. You are so right – where is our Adebayor? We often had pretty midfield football at the Chavs but posed no threat in the final third. They were untroubled by our possession of midfield and it was the same against Man U. Every opposition knows this.And we do have decent defenders BUT they haven’t a clue on counter attacks. What can anyone say about Alumnia? For me the worst is his s-l-o-w release of the ball giving time for the Chavs to get back into positions. Grr. And once again our crosses (and corners) were awful. Surely this is down to training? We need hours daily on both. And to remove Walcott from the game so easily was a tragedy to watch. Once upon an age ago he showed intelligent reading and got into great positions. Now he follows behind and seemed to lose any heart soon after half time. Rosicky would have at least showed more commitment and more intelligence. Is this current team on current form truly a ‘top four side’? Of course, I’ll be cheering on Wednesday where I hope there will be form across the pitch as well as individual class in key areas. I’m keeping the faith…
Please don’t say that. (with regards to Ade Arse) But we do need another striker for when RVP gets injured again next year!
Diaby is not a defensive midfielder. HE is tall, and his size is what was needed against Chelski and their midfield…
IT does not matter how much attacking play we had, we did not score. In fact, we have some MAJOR issues with attack I feel. Crossing the ball to a 5′6 make shift striker against the likes of the Chelsea defense is comical. Not going to work.
If we wanted to play this way, Bendtner should have started.
Plan B was to drive the ball literally right thru the middle…. threading the needle through 2-3 chelsea players. Not going to work…. how many times did you see us literally trying to force the issue here to have the ball intercepted? IT is so pathetic to see Arsenal pass the ball around the box over and over. No penetration and no ideas. Its almost comical.
The problem is that we do not have a tall out and out striker. Our whole team supports the small midfield and forward we have. We push up too far and get beaten on the counter over and over. How many times were TV and WG up front? More than our midfielders!
Arsene is an ass for not buying an out and out striker. This team will never win and needs someone like TH again to keep the defense honest and also to be physical and fast.
Arsenal is too small. Litreally nasri, cesc, rosicky, denilson, arshavin, walcott sagna and clichy are under 5′9.
That is ridiculous.
Arsene is really stubborn. To a point where I am not actually starting to wonder about his mental state. How can someone not see what is right in front of him. He is determined to win his way or bust and that is not how it is done.
When arsenal started shipping all of its veteran players in the mid 2000’s it was the start of something distastrous. The over 30 policy of AW is also to blame. Stubbornly sticking to this for what???? after 30 a player cannot play anymore?
what we have now is a bunch of players who are good but not good enough. THey are too small…. do not have a true leader amongst them and also never get the reprimand of their coach. IF they did, Im sure you would see a lot more effort out of them. As much as I hate old red nose….at ManU, his ire and wrath gets players to perform.
One other point I thought of is that AW relationship with the fans is at a very bad point and he does not seem to care about this critical fact. It is us the fans who put $$ in the clubs pockets. ITs us who come to games and support the team. HE needs to stop kidding us and BS ing us.
I truly feel he is over it…. a manager who is so blinded by what is happening around him needs to go
Yeah but the over aged policy was changed when he brought in Campbell who cannot play, and Silvestre who should not play. You are right, this man has completely lost it !
Wenger seems frozen in the headlights when it comes to signing a player.He always waits and refuses to do a deal until the last minute,trying to squeeze the last penny out of it.He says it is always a risk to sign a player but I’ve always believed the greatest risk in life is never to take a chance.
The whole fanbase,the media and ex players know we needed a centre forward but he failed.All the time we spend millions on buying 16 year olds, many of them failing to make the grade.He doesn’t mind this gamble because when it goes wrong no-one see’s it and therefore he can’t be criticized.
The fans are being treated as fools with promises of tommorow we will be a great team.Unfortunatly tommorow never comes Mr Wenger.
“team is young and mentally fragile , a good consistent support and within a year or two , this team will be very good ”
No it won’t because all of the best players will have left by then to play elsewhere! It has been years of young players this, and with experience that, but its now getting beyond a joke in my opinion. Just 2 or 3 class players bought in would make all the difference and will persuade the best players that maybe Arsenal might actually win something one day, which in the end is all they are playing for!
Chrism , any other way is chaos, buy this , buy that , 30M here , 40M there and the end result , no one so sure , just look at Liverpool Aquilani and then Man UTD Berbatov .
30M AW has will buy one first class player , and if that is an another Aquilani , that is .
Montreal your arguments are so childish. Who said we should spend “40m here and 30m there”? Sorenson (much much better than Almunia (£3m), Chamak (£12m) in August 2009, Gareth Barry (£17m) before City bought him and Kompany £8m when City bought him. That is £40m – no where near the money we got for Adebayor and Toure. Arsenal would be whipping ManU and Chelsea by now, and we would not have to dip into the market for another three seasons, and we will retain our good players because the club has realistic aspirations. Go and support Wenger in LA Galaxy next season, because U are not an Arsenal fan, but a Wenger fan.
too easy to say really. the wage bill will easily balloon as well. with those 4 players, tt’s another 10-12 million a year on wages alone, assuming they’re on a 50k – 60k a week. and that doesn’t include bonuses, signing-on fees and other expenses.
to keep the financial stability, when wenger has say 30 million to spend, it probably really is only 15-20 million of player transfer costs that he can afford.
Chris, you predicted we would get, ”ten points out of twelve”.
You should play the lottery, your bound to win.
It was so obvious, to most Arsenal fans that this collaspe was coming.
The writing was on the wall since August 2009, before the season started.
Arsene Wenger has had 5 years to deliver and he hasnt. How many years does everyone think he should be given ? There was a time, not so long ago, when Chelsea NEVER beat Arsenal; now they do it in second gear. There are plenty of Mangers out there. Possibles that come to mind are Rikjiaard, Van Basten, Laurent Blanc, even Pellegrini when Real Madrid dispose of him as they always do with their managers. All are young, experienced, with something to prove.
In the end, Arsenal is bigger than anyone. If it even looked like we were close to winning the Premiership it would be a different matter, but sorry, we arent, and we are going backwards. Wenger has done a great job, but he’s probably now less successful than George Graham. Time to be ruthless.
If you look at the time he has been at the club then he is less successful than George,who really had no money to play with.Not a 100 million pound wage bill.
Firstly, to the fan from Montreal. I have been hearing this for the last two or three years, sorry mate but I think you are wrong.
Secondly, I think the whole Arsenal team ought to apologise to the fans because of the naivety shown at the back and the lack of real commitment.
Third, please Mr Wenger, can we return to the old values of Arsenal. Remember the days when no-one got past Tony Adams and Martin Keown, at least not with the ability to continue playing in the match.
Fourth, Please bring back Wrighty, I don’t care how old or unfit you are at the moment, you were and always will be a big, strong striker with the killer instinct of a great WRIGHT shark!
As I have said in previous posts, i really think it is time for a change. Let’s take the chance of not having Mr. Wenger in charge any more. If players want to leave because of that happening then they are not worthy of wearing the Arsenal shirt.
I am tired of the same weary proclamations that we are mentally strong and we should have won and that we were the better team. I don’t care if Arsenal bore me to tears for most of the match as long as I can go home knowing we won, have three points in the bag and have some silverware to polish.
I just hope that we give someone a real hiding for a change. Holding my breath? No Sir.
I don’t fink i need much 2 say b’cos d writer ‘ve said virtually all wat is on my mind,buh 4 u 2 say we shuld keep supporting d team is meaningless wen d manager knows d probs of d team buh fail 2 solve.
I fink AW is worked up,he’s gat no idea on hw 2 manage d team and he shuld get fired b’cos dat’s wat he is afraid of 4 him 2 refuse such a big club as Real Madrid.AW u ‘re sick and stop toying wif our heart.
do you have a speech problem?
I hate to say this but so many people have lost faith…=(
Its true we do seem to be in need of a striker, AW is right in saying we have scored alot recently so there is some justification for our lack of activity , plus VP will be back and Bentner is almost back to match fitness. I would’ve liked to see a Bezema/Higuain/Pato wrenched out for a hefty sum, we had the money this summer to toss up a good 60mill and still be in the green. I mean it stays within the principles of young and very talented, sure its alot of dosh but my arguement is simple bring them in and alternate between 4-4-2 and 4-3-3. I hate to lash out on the obvious striker issue but maybe the current crop need a little more pressure to earn the strip.
On the other hand I put it into perspective, the global perspective. MU owes what 900 million, and Madrid beefed up their teams with 300 million, Chelsea’s been spending close to that amount over the years, City… the list is long and the numbers get longer too. Football Fan or not I’m very proud that Arsenal is one of the only clubs out there that shows a moral conscience, while everyone out there throwing their money around and winning, we’re still hanging on, yes hanging on. People are starving and dying, I’m pretty sure you could feed Africa for a year with that amount of cash.
The prospect of Fabregas leaving is heartbreaking for both Arsenal and Arsene. If Fabregas hadn’t gotten all the game time that he has, he would be no where near the player he is. Yes, our players are young but give them all around 200 games of game time and trust me the ones that have the talent will be the best. Yes i miss the good old days, where we were going 49 games unbeaten and demolishing teams. But, I love Arsenal and I have enormous faith in Wenger, if he was my coach I’d be Zidane
I sat infront of the game, and for the entire 90 mins I really thought we’d at least draw the result. Winning wasn’t a necessity before losing to MU, we have an “easier” end of season.
Right at the start of the season, I told myself that given the fixture list our season would be over by February, in the sense that we’d need to remain within 5 points of the top if not already top. Considering that, yep we are in a disappointing position 9 points adrift, but KEEP THE FAITH, this is the Premier League and believe me it will be very interesting to see who’s smiling at the end of the season.
Seeing many people upset is indeed sad, I know.
Ask any Arsenal supporter whether he believes we can win the title before the season starts. 9/10 will say “Yes”. That is the believe Wenger brings to the club, players and supporters.
The problem is that the believe is rarely reflected on the pitch and in the decisions he takes.
You are wrong !!!!
9/10 Arsenal fans said we would not win the premiership.
Last season we finished 18points behind the champions.
Wenger then sells two experienced players for £40 million,
and buys one player for £10 million.
Who in their right mind would think we would win the premiership.
9/10 Arsenal fans were right.
amen brother….
Sorry mate I don’t believe anything that AW says now. He is as deluded IMHO as everyone else that believes he is. WE NEED TO WIN AND BE KILLERS OF TEAMS.
I thought we would be looking for a win against Villa and Liverpool and hopefully a draw against Man U.Anything above 7 points would have been phenominal without strikers.Drogba plays against us and Chelsea win simple as that so there was no chance there.We are the third best team in the league and need to consolidate our position.Lets just hope Arsene has realised our weaknesses and looks to resolve them for next season.
How did Arsenal go from the Invincibles to a bunch of pussies…we need to call a spade a spade.
well said.
Normally
In everyday life we fix thing that are broken if we can’t afford it we teak it for cover to gain money to fix the problem but certainly the fix most be induced otherwise kaput
Are we running with bad tweaks and lodes of creeks it’s apparent so when does it get fixed?
Players are there it isn’t as if we don’t have players what are they doing are they not on the field and on the board working their stuff out are they not following Mr wegner s game plan and strategy
Everyone knows we don’t have a striker if we dont have the striking power why don’t we just defend we lose matches cause we leek goals we have to put a stop to it a draw is better than a loss we all seem to blame alumonia but then he is part responsible as he should command his area better there must be better communication among team players to watch each other’s back rather than (ah he knows what to do he will look after it he is ok)
On the other hand we are demanding a lot from our players we tend to put them under pressure they start to run a bit scared with less motivation athletes need motivation engorgement and support and i am sure they know that the supporters are not too happy also we seem to forget that the players after all are human beings and failure dose take from ones personality so our players have to face it twice
With travel weather and form and tiredness and injury all contribute to low a steam also having to play with different players communication is a must leader chip taking responsibility this has to come from within training also adapting fast to the change the know how in changing a negativity to a positivity
Acknowledgement of our weakness and addressing the problem on the training ground to improve players working together to improve rather than to replace
We all need to work together support each other and bring up the weak motivate the weak essentially to stand next to each other with equal strength
The fact is we got to do it with what we got it is simple then we must acknowledge that fact and work together to improve but love and cherish what we got cause it is all what we got
Com on arsenal
Two bits of very poor defending cost us points which is a shame because over-all the team played well & Chelsea didn’t look great.Lets be honest we gave them the game rather than them taking it. To be 2 nil down inside 25 minutes & then to spend the rest of the game attacking (& not to concede more goals) shows great skill & commendable spirit.
From a footballing point of view it certainly shouldn’t be all doom & gloom & yes anything can happen in the next couple of months…maybe my prayers for a 2 month long injury for Rooney will be heard. Ha ha!!!
To those who keep baying on about signing experienced/quality players the reality is that although we may have money to buy them, we have a wages structure that means that we couldn’t agree to their wage demands. Our top whack is (allegedly) 85K for Cesc…which is half
of what the best paid Man U , Chealsea, Man City, Barca & Real Madrid are on. In this respect we are never going to be able to compete. If you understand this then you understand what a fantastic job AW is doing.
To be honest we don’t even play half as attractive football as we used to so I think the term pretty football even really applies. How much excellent one touch football do we even see? Without rvp we are no more exciting than villa who are good but nothing special
We need a new striker… world class. We need a new attitude with players willing to do anything on the pitch. There are a few that come to mind… Gallas, Vermalen, Song and for the most part Cesc…. I would say that there have been times that even he has played lethargic… this season he is scoring goals and that has helped but he needs to be more vocal. For a captain he is too quiet.
We need AW to give a real ass whipping to his players. He coddles them, protects them and is way too loyal to them. what does this all mean? It means, I can stink it up in a game and know that my manager will not do a darn thing… he may not even talk to me!
I have been heartbroken like most of you all for a long time. each year its the same thing.. over and over again. All talk by AW….
Who ever thought that winning 49 straight would have a negative effect on the club? I think that in some ways its had a negative effect. We now have a board that is way to scared to do anything or say anything to AW… he already has been called the greatest and has been given way too much power and say at the club. He is a manager not an accountant. PPL say trust in Arsene but 5 years is a long time and the worst part is that its the same story every year.
We have the $$$… we need to use it. What the board and AW ass face do not get is that the fans are becoming very alienated and that is not a good thing for the club whatsoever.
Wenger must throw away all of this factors should Arsenal wants to win trophy as soon as possible:
1: Satisfaction of the current squad
A big shame that AW has said that he will enter the transfer market in last month and search for the striker but what then he said when some of his players back after just recover from injuries? And…. Almunia, a liability player since took goalkeeping role from Lehmann, still in his 1st choice?
2: Keep faith of his young squad
A very good plan on developing kids, definitely. Fabregas, Diaby and Song prove that AW’ plans work on, but………. fans have to wait for FIVE YEARS. By throwing so many young bodies in premiership, FA cup and UCL matches, you can’t say your target is to win the trophies, only to develop them and that’s what you did in 5 years trophy drought. How long will it be?? And how long you will stick with Denilson and Walcott?
3: Lack of spending
Wenger hate to buy, yes… But why?? Probably AW doesn’t want to sacrifices his depth, as he hates to sell too…
4: Hates of physical games
Arsenal needs some steel in all areas to compete the strength of the opponent, definitely. But i just wonder if AW wants to avoid his team to be label as Bolton, Stoke, Hull and Blackburn, which he already not like them too much.
5: French factors
Bacary Sagna, who is a consistent performer of crosses but sucks when move forward, plays every match until gets tired, and Emmanuel Eboue, impress this season still warm the bench. Gael Clichy play 90 minutes but lost his marker four straight times. Samir Nasri gets 90 minutes in every match but did little. The last two should be drop since the defeat to Man Utd. But what the hell they still play? To make their name in the plane list to South Africa?
So when AW will abandon all of this factors?
Well, I can’t see it….
AW hates spending because he is an accountant these days and also has too much pride with his “babies” who he is developing and also his youth experiment.
In todays game, picking the gems is a talent… and he has it… but to hone that talent takes years and here we are today. Waiting…waiting…
Ive spent a lot of time, emotional energy and money on ARsenal. My little daughter even has her kit and knows some players.
its sad but whats sadder is tht there are hundreds and thousands of me out there.. fans who are tired and dissapointed.
Believe me im an optimist. I really am. I just am having a hard time knowing that nothing is changing… I would be ok if we tried new strategies… got new players and lost. I can live with that… what i cant live with his BS and no game plan. It reeks of mediocrity and lack of pride.
I don’t see that there will be this mass exodus from the Emirates if Wenger decides to leave (and lets be real here, that is the only way that he will leave. He will never get sacked). They are under contract and not all managers are as nice as Wenger when someone wants to leave. There are plenty of good, talented managers out there who can do better than Wenger. A part of me wonders if a good manager came in and organized the same players defensively, what would happen?
I think that many people think that Wenger has managed to take these rubbish players and turn them into gold, but I’d argue that while this may be true going forward, it certainly isn’t on a defensive basis.
Since Abramovich decided to buy a team with money no object the whole face of English soccer changed…& now we have Man City doing the same..the only club who has been able to compete has been Man U.
Everton, Villa & Spurs have been gaining ground in recent seasons, but we still have the edge..because we can offer what they can’t…Champions League football & because of Wengers vision.
Everybody says the team is young and needs time. However, my question is if AW and the team spends 20 years learning madness, how many years will they spend practicing it?
The truth is that the entire squad and AW need to be changed. We cannot get anymore millage from them.
It`s at times like this that I say to myself “it`s only a game” and it is. It`s a game that used to be played with a football now it`s a game played with money. With all the frustration, anger and arguments that supporters vent on the websites it is no longer enjoyable. If we wanted to play with money we would get out the Monopoly board and have a laugh but this is more serious because millions of people are addicted.
The pressures on managers is immense and all because of money. Same with the players. With the money they earn they`re not allowed an off day or to have human frailties.
Sooner or later someone,somehow, has got to put the lid on the money or places like Emirates will become a speedway track full of weeds.
This is why I like this blog, sincere and writing things the way they are. The blind optimism on other blogs made me sick today. What are we supposed to be optimistic about? We’re entering the fifth year without trophies, what positives are in that?
The positives are that we play beutiflly and are a joy to watch. Yes we are in a drought, but as long as you dont lose hope, there is always a chance.
I still think wenger is d best coach in d world
I totally agree with Uh comments…
How can you win or even pretend to challenge for trophies if you don’t reinforce your squad…
It is honourable to believe in youth and talent,but AW also forgot how he got so successful… !!
He had what we called a “team”… 5 years ago, Arsenal was coming to Stanford bridge and the Chelsea fans would wonder, just wonder…
I was at the bridge and I could here the blues fans speculate on the score and how many goals they would score to humiliate us… Believe me, I felt sorry for myself and not very proud to be an Arsenal fan… I had my jersey on so I could not hide from the “jokes” and critics but stand “kind of proud”… Well we know the end result… My only defence, for the after talk match, was that we had most of the possession… They laughed at me and said that it was nice to watch… One guy told me that Arsenal was like a guy very good at pulling girls but when it comes to the bed thing, he could not perform…!!!
My story might be boring, but it just says that we will never, never, win any major trophy with this squad…
Also for a worrying matter, If any Arsenal fans thought that Fabregas would not leave in the summer, they are on for a big surprise… He has become the main asset for the next election in Barcelona… If AW does not sell him, those greedy freaks from the board will, without a shadow of a doubt…
Another thing is that we might see Wenger leave … It is a possibility… We are not Portsmouth but the fact is a club like Arsenal needs to put his mark once in the while among the best! and we are not doing that…!!! I truly believe that AW has for only instruction to get us on the CL spot in order to keep the bank and the accounts happy…
Ooouch!!! It hurts, it really hurts, THE TRUTH HURTS Chris, but I must say; this is spot on. If I have to rate this article, I’ll give it 9.5 / 10. I like this phrase “Is It The Fear Of Losing Him That Is Keeping Wenger At Arsenal?”
Thanks for this article Chris. “WE ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH” Our destiny is in the hands of other clubs now.
The arguement that Chelsea have older players that will all go off the boil at once and then have to fork out hundreds of millions to replace them is pure folly. It is the mangers job to manage this. Fergie does it brilliantly, AW does not. With Adams Bergkamp Parlour Keown Pires etc etc he flogged them to death and replaced them with novices. The new “Back Four should have been in place 2 seasons before the old one retired. It is customary in every job in the world to have a hand over period, and those who don’t struggle.
It is not the losing that hurts, it is the fact that we know we are going to lose before the kick off.
Dear Cris and all commentators,
I am a bit confused Arsenal fan. Would you plz help me answer my simple question which is ” Do Arsen wenger really need to win trophy? or he simply need to demonstrate the products of the academy or cheaply bought players to be sold with profit? In my case, i am feeling more of the later and think of Arsen as a pure businessman than my previous thought of him as both a person who cares about the football fan as well as the business.
AW always plays down the financial difficulties of Arsenal. Has he really got 30 million transfer kitty to spend with? (Mind you, 30 million pounds may only buy half of C Ronaldo). Fans want AW to buy but those stikers available are pretty expensive.
Just look at Liverpool and Man Utd. Their finanicals are terrible. Chelsea is no better but they have a deep pocket. So, when you pay ridiculous transfer fees for established players, be prepared to go into adminstration anytime. Yes, you can buy trophies but you can never make any commerical sense to do it.
yes i agree, i think arsenal really doesn’t have that much money to spend. and wenger is careful and wary of spending on a player based on a good reputation from previous performances and having to pay a premium (also on wages, bonuses, etc.) due to the fanfare (a la jeffers and richard wright and reyes. esp jeffers.).
i suppose wenger could just splash out, but in no time arsenal would be like the manures and pools. arsenal’s 416m debt is not a joke, and servicing tt huge debt means we have to maintain certain things, and be more careful in others.
now, i cannot remember, but as far as i know, wenger nvr reveals how much he has to spend, and i believe the 30m quote is a rumour w/o basis that’s been spread around as a lot of fans were so hopeful of a transfer coup.
the problem is that arsenal’s finances are not transparent, so we often have to take their word for it that we have money, blah blah. i think that’s just to keep the creditors, supporters and investors feel more secure.
but i look forward to next season, as the realist in me knows that the title is chelsea’s and manure’s to lose, and i don’t see them dropping up to 9 points each when they know they are this close. maybe only against each other…
What pretty football? Did you even watch the Man U / Chelsea games?
A bunch of clueless footballers passing the ball to each other in the midfield, crossing to a midget in between 4 defenders in front of goal.
Wenger has no Plan B, unlike Ferguson or Mourinho.
Arsenal = Ajax
Same script different cast wats going wrong my oh my
I really don’t get al dis agression abt wenger, at d beginin of d season wen things were movin on fine, i wonder wat all of you were sayin, just b/cos we had som injury setbacks all of you r ready 2 have Aw’s neck, som of u said manure had rooney & berbetov, chelski, anelka & drogba, one questn, wat if they al had injuries what would have been d fate of manure & chelski, Aw should ‘ve bought in january yes he mentioned 2players, villa & mc, ist villa, 30mil isn’t near enough 4 him, 2nd chamak, wat sense is there in payin an outrageous amt 4 som1 we can get 4 free in few months comin, even if we had bought him, how sure are we dat he can adapt quickly & start turnin things around, even AS tuk somtime 2 adapt, also bear in mind that most of our goals dis season is 4rm mfders, life is abt ups & downs we’ve had our failures 4 past weeks now it is 4 us 2 keep believin & be triumphant, let’s get ready 4 sucess because it surely is on d way, now is not d time 2 critisize AW & d boys we can save it till season’s end cos whether we like it or not dis boys or midgets or rookies or whateva u choose 2 call them are what we’re gona be havin till end of d season, so let’s wait till then & while we ‘re at it we might try 2 be loyal gooners give them som hands & som supports, even if it’s pretence cos dat is wat being a football fan is all about. Come on u gooooooooooooooners!
haha, i was just thinking the same a while ago. so many were hailing the new 4-3-3, crediting wenger for the great turnaround from last season. and now, just as many are throwing rocks at him.
some comments have been so crude, so vulgar, i hate to think that i share a part of my life with such people. i only hope they are little gremlins that will grow a brain to fill that hollow space behind their eyes.
although, on the same note, i was a little surprised and frustrated that wenger did not reinforce in january. i don’t mean to buy, as there were no one good that was available and it would be stupid to buy over the odds, or buy a footballer due to panic and realise half a year on that he is no better than a 3-legged stool at football. i thought he could have gotten some good loan deals, and that was what i had been hoping for.
You should be grateful to our moderation system then for deleting the real vulgar comments we get
Chris, You very well know we are good enough —- But a little nervous.
You very well know we can beat anyone— But sometimes we choose not to.
Arsenal’s problem are there by choice, They simply choose not to train to do the right things, They simply choose not to play the right way.
Sometime back, I said to you about not doing enough with free-kicks, somehow, we won a few games after that from free-kicks.
Now Chris, We don’t have to keep talking about defending and goalkeeping as those are 2 things that Arsenal will never do right so, let us concede from counter attacks it alright – And then score more and here is how;
1. Arsenal needs to STOP passing the ball backwards even when there is a better placed player forward.
2. Arsenal needs to go back to their roots- Counterattacking was their baby wasn’t it?
3. Arsenal players need to learn to go at it alone, as everytime an Arsenal player breaks, They always hold back to wait for support – Support always arrives together with opposition.
4. Arsenal forwards need to play wide, They concentrate too much at the center leaving full backs unoccupied and ready to attack.
5. Arsenal needs to shoot…………..Everything else is always good enough but they simply don’t shoot. I wonder why, I thought every player loves to score.
6. Andrei Arshavin needs to learn that he is a part of the team and he may be short but so is Carlos Teves, Lionel Messi, Diego Maradona. I don’t think being short is good reason why he shouldn’t score clear chances, He wasted 2 during Manchester United game and he wasted 1 during Chelsea game by shooting a seriously lovely ball directly at the goal keeper while burying it at the bottom corner was the easiest and guaranteed goal option.
7. William Gallas needs to know Arsenal may lack strikers but they have forwards and those forwards have scored a lot of goals this season and what they need now is a defender as Arsenal are nowadays getting attacked with their box empty and Manuel Almunia can’t guard the whole box alone!!!!!!. I don’t really know what he is always doing in the other box.
8. How many headers have we scored in the last few years?????. That has to be addressed.
9. Arsene Wenger needs to be tough and he needs to scream at his own players when they are doing easy things wrong, Instead he is always screaming at the officials. On Sunday, Nasri needed someone to shout at him SHOOOOOOT!, Arsene Wenger was just sitting there.
10. Arsene Players need to learn that they have been the better team in almost all games they have played – So they should stop acting kids as they are no longer kids – They need to show confidence. A confident Arsenal may still have been beaten by Chelsea but Manchester United was so lightweight during both meetings, They should be ashamed of themselves for loosing those games and PICK UP.
Just 1 Statement:
Chelsea, Man. Utd and Liverpool have organised teamwork, Arsenal have organised guesswork.
And since when you when games by ball possession statistics rather than the number of goals scored?
That’s It
The second to last blogger ‘Freddy’ suggests that Arsenal’s defensive problems should not be highlighted further and his reason is because the Gunners will not address those problems anyway.He maybe 100% accurate with that but let us hope not. If he is correct, then prepare for another 5 years of trophy drought and successive hammerings from the big 2.
Lee Dixon and Alan Hansen called it correctly, Arsenal have ‘defensive issues’ and there is no getting away from it, the results will confirm that whether it is discussed or not. If Arsenal want to win they are going to have to face these problems, its simply a question of when, if they do not want to win then fine! don’t mention it. Ancellotti and Ferguson will not likely mention it either! Instead they will just continue to exploit it as they have been doing. I would too, having their rival hand them a 2 goal start every time they meet must be music to their ears! Long may it continue is likely to be the sentiment from West London and Manchester as far as that goes!
Many people seem to think that Fabregas and RVP will leave if Wenger leaves! Maybe maybe maybe not! However one thing is sure, both players want to win, and so both are likely to take a long look at what the chances of them winning while remaining at Arsenal are this coming off season!
If Arsenal and Wenger do not ‘demonstrate’ their own ambitions by tackling the teams problems soon. Then Fabregas may decide that sunny Barcelona might prove to be a better place to collect trophies than Arsenal! Same goes for RVP too.
All the discussion is of finding a target man striker!!! If that was a problem then why was Adebayor sold? It could be because his attitude was not the best? Whatever the reason, why did Wenger not go out and replace him asap before kick off?
Wenger has made a lot of strategic errors to bring Arsenal to this position, so he really should accept responsibility for that.
One possibility is that he might quit at the end of the season? We could only speculate on that of course but he did say things last summer that inferred that might happen!
One of them was that ‘I never worked harder in my time at Arsenal than the season just finished’. The second thing was that the then ‘4 season trophy drought’ was his most difficult period with the club.
Again purely speculative but, those confessions could be coming from a man who is tired and frustrated with the scant reward of finishing 4th every year and no trophies on display!!
I guess time will tell?
He has done great things for Arsenal but maybe he is thinking about calling time?
WOW………There is nothing else left to say. If I were Fabianski…….. I would move to Alaska after a game like this.