All’s Well That Ends Well
I don’t know about you but I think I started this season back in August as a 25 year old with no grey hair, a strong beating heart and I am ending it here in May as a 43 year old male with gray hair and a constant need for heart meds. Before anyone goes any further – I am 43.
This was not a season many of us wanted to endure nor some of us expected. It was as we all know, filled with downs and ups and downs and ups. And in the end, Arsenal came out ahead – barely.
We endured endless speculation about the overall decline of our team. Our neigbours around the corner picked by many to supplant us as the top club in London and ultimately take our place in the Champion’s League.
We suffered the ignominy of hearing our manager tell us in the summer that any club that sold its two biggest players could no longer be considered a big club and then have just that happen. Then we suffered an August to forget as we not only were humiliated – yes humiliated at Old Trafford 8-2 but also endured the own goal fest versus Blackburn. Finally, a team that never reacts on the last day of the transfer deadline spent about money quickly bringing in players to shore up the holes on what certainly seemed at the time to be the Arsenal equivalent of the Titanic.
We were all very flayed and frayed 3 weeks into the season and there were 35 games to go at one point and you couldn’t blame the faithful for wanting to crawl under a rock, cry in a few pints (or 20) or just plain wish the season would end. I remember personally saying I had hoped that this was just a dream, that it was the day after we clinched the 2004 title and that the last 7 years was a result of a bad piece of Chinese food that didn’t digest. But alas when I woke up it was still the 2011/2012 season.
Overall, with the ability to look back on the season, and as Arsenal’s performances stand out for Gooners, it was season of mediocrity league wide. While there were sustained plays of brilliance from many of the teams it always seemed like this was the season when no one team clearly wanted anything to do with being looked at with a winning eye. Ultimately City, would win it but their match and the way they won it was a microscopic look at the league and the season as a whole.
I will remember this season for the infighting. Already at fever pitch early in the summer because of the way the previous season ended. I will also remember it for the incredible highs as well. The 5-3 at Stamford Bridge, the routing of Spurs at the Emirates, the near comeback in the Champion’s League versus AC Milan and the 1-0 win over City. There were more moments and we’ll likely get into those in more detail as we do final reports and looks back in the next two weeks. But with every low came a high and vice versa.
So here we are. A day after the season has ended. We all are breathing a little more relaxed. Pepto Bismol and other assorted pharmaceuticals are out of stock. What is next is anyone’s guess. While we can relax knowing our minimum target is secure, there is still work to be done. Defensively, yet again we need fixing. When they were good – they were very good. For a team that did allow in 49 goals this season they were still the 8th best team in Goals Allowed Average of around 1.7 (or so). Still where they were really lacking was strength defensively in the middle of the pitch. Alex Song was good at times, woeful at others. He would have a good half a good game or a few games but like yesterday on West Brom’s second goal or against Norwich, the midfield allowed too much room for the opposition to walk through. A defensive midfielder is a must and we stick by our story that Yann M’Vila is that guy.
The signing of Lukas Podolski is a hopeful sign that the team has learned the errors of last summer and will hopefully tie down its biggest deals early. Additionally, players who can be shipped out must be shipped out. A complete reworking of the way the club is organized in terms of playing staff has to be considered. No, that is not saying the entire teams needs an overhaul, it means the financial system players operate under needs a re-working.
Additionally, there are rumours that there will be a summer shuffling of the board. Stan Kroenke is no longer bound by the 1 year agreement that kept the board as is at the time of his taking control as majority shareholder. Stan is now free to bring in new people. Word is his son will come on board and take an active role within the team. There are other organizational changes being talked about. We hope one of them is a way to restructure sooner rather than later the awful commercial deals the club finds itself constrained by.
Then there is the Robin Van Persie saga. The last thing fans want is another summer of ‘will he, or won’t he.’ By all indications I do not think it will be that. I think this is going to resolve itself before the Euros. No, no insider information here. Just some sleuthing and trying to read the tea-leaves.
There are other things to discuss but I am going to leave that for later.
The season is over. We did it. By the scruff of our teeth and in spite of ourselves. We are back in the Champion’s League for an unprecedented 15th season in a row. While silverware is an absolute must for any sports fan, success can be measured in many different ways. I’ll leave it at that.
With the season over, I know look to next season – sorry – I am. I do believe that there were performances that showed us this season that we may not be as far off as we may believe. There is still work. But not major earth moving work. I believe that if the right pieces are added that this club will compete for a title. (There I said it). There is a core here that is a team – something we have not had 6 years prior. That is something to me and since it’s a new day and a new season is only 12 weeks away – I am refreshed, relaxed and waiting for the start.
We have a busy week and some busy times ahead just wanted to keep abreast of a couple of things –
- This Wednesday we are planning a live chat event with our writers and hopefully some special guests from the Arsenal world. We’ll release details soon. It is tentatively scheduled for 1400GMT/0900 EST. Look back to the site later.
- We’re calling on you to submit who you think rates for the 1st Annual YAMA Gooner’s. The YAMA Gooners aour an award to recognize the following: Best Arsenal Blog, Best Arsenal Blogger, BestArsenal Tweeter, Best New Arsenal Blog, Best Journalist, and Best Opinion Writer. Please use our contact page to submit your nominees. We are going to allow a week for nominees and then post the top 4 in each category. Please be sure to mention who and what category you are nominating for.
And plenty more. We don’t plan on resting this summer. Me, for right now I am going to relax. Take some deep breaths and sigh a deep sigh of relief for getting through this season.
Until next time Stay Goonerish – DAG (@YouAreMyArsenal)
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After our seven years of famine why would we waste time trying to predict how Wenger might reinvent himself and change his well entrenched habits? It seems kinda silly. He is what he now is. And Arsenal FC have no contrary voice to balance his excesses and lacks. All references to his past-success are now redundant – seven years is an eternity in sport and the longer this famine continues the more one must consider that his success was a by-product of what he inherited and not his own creation or magic alone. In other words he needs what he himself can’t produce in order to win. That theory matches his Monaco experience where early success was followed by a long famine and – the sack.
Seven years of winning nothing, doubling-down on errors and choking on the few occassions we have a winning-chance demonstrate the problem to be fixed is at the top – it’s Wenger and the monopoly of control that he has now amasssed at the club that is the problem and a solution isn’t on the horizon.
Podolski may simply be Wenger’s annual big-buy. Much like he chased and bought Gervinho early last pre-season and Koscielny early the pre-season before. It’s highly unlikely to be a change in Wenger’s long-formed habits of squad replenishment.
Sooner or later you just gotta face reality. I know it’s hard for sports lovers because it’s an escape and when your hope in it goes it becomes what it is – a waste of time.
@Kiwi,
Wenger re-created himself after the “Invincibles”. The problem is that his creation was and is still flawed. Same thing he did at Monaco.
he reminds me of Mugabe, a freedom fighter who fought in the trenches and won freedom for his people. and then became even more of a monster than the people whom he ousted. He cares, but has become a dictator and gone out of control.
I said this 4 years ago and will say it again, unless Arsene re re-invents himself again (very unlikely) we are doomed to mid-table mediocrity. After 7 years of nostalgia he has a very small window to make us a big club once more or be resigned to being an average club.
Can anyone honestly say that we still play attractive and exciting football? I have truly enjoyed watching Der Klopp and Pardew lads this year. Can’t say the same for Arsenal. Still my team and it has my emotional investment, BUT!!!!
@Caribkid, Ummm… yeah.
While I think Wenger is not going to change his ways … I can’t accept a comparison to Robert Mugabe, especially with friends and family living in Zim.
Wenger is not Mugabe… he’s not killing players… and he’s not evil…
though I am sure he is convinced he is 100% correct in everything he does!
Why has he been allowed to FAIL 7 years in a row, and is not in jeopardy of losing his job as manager?
Simple.
The Arsenal FC are NOT INTERESTED in WINNING TROPHIES… if it means they have to reduce profits to do so.
They are interested in MAKING MONEY. If we win, that’s a bonus. But they have already moved the goalposts, and now 3rd of 4th place is at Trophy, and means more than winning the FA Cup.
@stag133,
Yes but could it also be the job of the players to say to the manager, look we want to win trophies
@George, Huh?
George?
THAT MAKE NO SENSE AT ALL?!
Its the PLAYERS JOB, to TELL THE MANAGER … WE WANT TO WIN TROPHIES?
WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?
amazing.
No, its the players job to PLAY FOOTBALL!
The ownership and board and manager PUT THE BEST TEAM ON THE FIELD.
They PROVIDE A GROUP OF TALENTED PLAYERS a WINNING FORMULA.
The players PLAY.
Why the hell would the players have to express that they want to win?
WHY IS IT EVEN A QUESTION THAT WINNING IS THE GOAL?!!!!
ONLY at Arsenal is MONEY more important.
i’ve said it quite a few times but patrick vieira was the main contributor in arsenal’s silverware won in the wenger era. in fact, wenger hasn’t won a single trophy in england without vieira. paddy was mentored by the old heads at ac milan; the likes of donadoni, baresi, maldini, desailly, and costacuarta. a talented player receiving a proper education.
then he came to arsenal and had the likes of adams, keown, bould, and manny petit to mentor him. a very talented and hard-working young player who understands italian tactics learning how to win in north london. the sky was the limit.
bottm line, it wasn’t just vieira’s talent, but he had a proper bit of mentorship; old heads who know how to win, teaching him how to win. that’s what arsenal is missing right now.
@joshuad,
Maybe the likes of Benayoun, Arteta, Rosicky, RVP, Sagna even could provide these old mentorship you speak of
@George, George, what has that group WON?
What can they pass down? It has been so long since we won, that there is no history of winning… as mentioned above … 7 years without a trophy is an ETERNITY in sports… if you claim to be among the best.
And somehow, we do.
Arteta & Benayoun helped a lot this year, but Benayoun isn’t coming back, and he only played the later half of the season, probably due to injuries to others.
@joshuad, Agreed Josh….But maybe Bould will
be a help….
For me it was especially painful watching young Aaron Ramsey trying to play
DM (and, before that, left wing) when he’s really got no clue about
positioning or a sense of his responsibilities. Likewise, I think Alex
Song, esp. for one his size, can do quite a bit with the ball (or stab-tackling
it away from opponents, but it all goes a little wonky if he has to run
(track back) in order to make the play. Arteta’s no great athlete either,
but his focus and field sense, combined with a wide range of (repeatable)
moves made him the best in this key position.
In truth, I don’t think AW plays an actual DM, rather a malleable midfield
three who are supposed to cover for each other, provided outlets and
maintain a proper fore-aft balance. Let’s just say that some players
(i.e., Arteta) are more attuned to this sort of thing than others (Ramsey)
who become very ball-centric and lose their sense of how they might
contribute to the shape of the team…..
Has anybody seen M’Vila who could maybe comment about his attributes?
@joshuad, you mean like Giggs and Scholes at United, teaching the younger players what its all about?
Unfortunately, our star players are SOLD far too soon, to pass on any wisdom, and the players that have remained, haven’t won ANYTHING before, so they have no winning mentality to pass down.
nasri said his piece about the fans that claim he left for money. these are the same people who think adebayor left for money; they’re trying to feel good about a player having the audacity to leave their precious arsenal. nuts!
adebayor was sold but people will still say he left for money. the only money ade left for was the 25 million that man city paid arsenal. i would have preferred his 17 goals and eleven assists at arsenal this past season. samir also says he left arsenal because he didn’t believe he could become a champion at arsenal. time always tells and it’s been 8 years since arsenal were crowned champions and haven’t come close since the ’07-’08 season. is time telling?
@joshuad,
Would Nasri have gone anywhere near Man City, or flirted with PSG if there wasn’t money involved?
@George, George. GOOD PLAYERS GET PAID.
He would have LEFT ARSENAL for the same pay elsewhere, AND had a chance to win!
what don’t you get? Arsenal are NOT ABOUT WINNING!!!!
Why do you think so many star players ask to leave??!!!
And what is wrong with a player going for MONEY?
His career can end at any moment.
When the CLUB go for PROFIT, over winning … somehow that is to be applauded?!
Its hypocrisy and a double standard. It makes no sense.
Arsenal FC are about MONEY, just like the player that leaves for more money.
When we get back to being about WINNING, maybe a few players will consider staying at the club to reap the benefits of winning titles…
Until then, the best players will leave, and fans who don’t get it will say … they left for money!
Every day we seem to get more and more rumours linking us to players, we’ve signed Podolski, we’re (I think/hope) we’re on the verge of signing M’Vila, we’ve had a bid accepted for Kagawa, and we all keep asking for Vertonghen/M’biwa or whoever, just wondering what this means for our young players? In particular; Miquel, Bartley, Yennaris, Coquelin, Frimpong, Lansbury, Miyaichi and Afobe. Could this mean most of them have to find their way away from arsenal? I predict Miquel, Frimpong and Afobe may go out on loan to some prem clubs next season, but it would be a shame to see some of them have to leave due to lack of first team opportunities. It would be a definite shame if Lansbury (The new Ray Parlour) would have to find somewhere else to play because we decided to persevere with Diaby. Or if Frimpong left because of M’Vila (personally Frimpong needs to get off Twitter and focus on his football next season)
Personally, Id like us to drop the crap, and also cut diaby loose when his contract expires, he’s a terrific player but we rarely see enough of him. Id like us to send Frimpong, Afobe, Miquel, Bartley and Yennaris out on loan next term, as well as Ramsey so he can get his confidence back and not suffer burnout like he has. (Somewhere like Swansea/Norwich maybe) So if the players who we sign/have a good chance of signing (M’Vila/Kagawa) come in Id say for the midfield: Song/M’vila/Le Coq in the DM role, Arteta/Jack/Coquelin in the “Gilberto/Arteta” role and Rosicky/Kagawa in the AM role behind the striker. This would mean we have good depth and we also don’t need to rush Jack back after his injury.
Sorry about the long comment, just some thoughts
@George, If the player is good enough, generally speaking, he will get into the team…
Arsenal need to fill the holes with PROVEN players.
If you have a proven player in a spot… obviously, thats better than having someone who has never done it at the EPL level.
The key is MIXING both youth and experience.
Our balance might have been slightly better this season, with the added experience of Benayoun and Arteta helping A LOT.
@George, Sorry, but I rather disagree with much
of what you’re saying….
First off, I want to believe the M’Vila signing (because YAMA broke it) but
I won’t until it’s announced. Next, all the links I’ve seen to Kagawa have
indicated that ManU is where he’s headed. Finally, name me the club that
will take over Diaby’s contract given his injury problems. City might be
tempted to do an “Owen Hargreaves” with him, but even this I doubt. Overall,
when it comes to signings, I’ll take AW’s word (“there won’t be many”)
over the constant agent and media plants.
I’ve got nothing (at all) against new signings and I think the argument
that they will “kill” our young players has been put in its place (i.e.,
competition for places is a good thing). The problem is that with the
25 man roster rule, young and homegrown players are the insurance policy so
only players who really cannot contribute go out on loan. Plenty of others
who could really use minutes are kept around for the Carling Cup and “just
in case.”
Despite the big number of goals shipped I think our biggest problem since
Cesc left has been maintaining possession and creating chances. We’ve got too
many players making deep runs forward and leaving us exposed when we fail
to hold onto the ball. TV5 and Song are the worst offenders, but Rosicky,
Ramsey, Gervinho and Walcott are not very good at keeping the ball either.
With players out of position and too many turnovers no lead is safe and
teams can happily play on the break….and not even end up with a poor
possession stat at game’s end. Obviously, replacing Cesc is impossible,
but this (huge) flaw in our tactics makes me really want a player like
M’Vila, who (according to accounts) wants to be a midfield anchor.
Combine him with Arteta (who might get foreward just a bit more) and then
the likes of Song, Wilshere, Diaby and maybe even Rosicky and Ramsey can
do their thing w/o inviting counter-attacks….
Finally, don’t apologize about the long post (winky face)….
@HighburyTerraceSteve,
I agree you need competition for places, and I did say if the media rumours were true and we DID get Kagawa would you not be worried about potentially promising youngsters like Le Coq and Lansbury being driven out due to lack of playing time? That would be my worry but Ive got no problem us signing experienced proven players opposed to 17 year olds for £500k that no-ones ever heard of
@HighburyTerraceSteve, you’re joking about City signing Diaby? right?
NOBODY would take Diaby for that salary.
and City want only one Arsenal player… RVP.
Nobody else could get into their team.
So, all you people who say the winning mentality has gone, how would YOU get it back again and make this club win things again? and don’t just give me fire Wenger, be more original than that.
IMO – Its not gone, but has definitely reduced.
To increase it I would ensure the team is frozen early in the summer (wouldn’t comment on what signings to make in this post), have a good preseason together, hope for a good start, have a good backup GK, make one strategic signing in January to keep things fresh and to prevent the morale to drop, and treat no match to be less important.
@soccerfreak, hope for a good start? and sign a backup GK?
and that will instill a winning mentality?
WHO on the team has WON ANYTHING?
there is NO winning mentality.
We haven’t won in 7 years.
and the CLUB care about profits, not trophies.
The change has to come from the TOP.
The Board, Ownership, and yes, THE BOSS.
No, we don’t have to fire Wenger, but the GOAL of what we are shooting for has to change… if Wenger wants to just move chess pieces around, and play nice football, then YES, HE HAS TO GO.
@stag133,
I agree with you on the point about no-one has won anything, if you look at Man Utd as an example, they dont have a great team/squad but they know how to win. But Wenger has won a lot of things in his time at Arsenal, and as Martin Tyler said “The worst loser I have ever met in football” if he hates losing so much and always goes ape-shit when we do lose, surely it is his responsibility to put this attitude to the players, and make them hate losing as much as he does.
@George, George.
READ Nasri’s statement about Arsenal.
Unfortunately, it rings true.
There are far too many players HAPPY to collect a HANDSOME paycheck every season, who have NEVER won anything… and now see 3rd of 4th place as a TROPHY… a milestone.
It is NOT.
That HAS TO CHANGE.
WENGER has to CHANGE or GO.
We can’t go on with this charade of 3rd place being better than winning the FA Cup… or this non-sense about money being the problem…
7 YEARS since we won a trophy.
NOT MUCH HAS CHANGED in HOW WE DO BUSINESS in the last 4 or 5…
@George, If there is one positive to be taken
from last season’s play it might be that the team came back from losing
positions on many occasions (including the final two matches). The flip
side, of course, is the lack of focus/professionalism/basic defending which
allowed us to ship (over and over and over) all those early goals. Still,
it perhaps indicates a solid, “never-say-die” attitude in the squad.
The adage that “winning breeds winning,” seems to carry weight. We aren’t
going to go out and buy a whole squad of “proven” winners. Hunger to win,
however, can come from other places and I think there are players in the
team who have it. Obviously we need a little (well, maybe a lot) of luck:
early victories, fewer injuries and players with a “refuse to lose” (or
draw) mentality. Football has always been about constant application with
scant rewards and then not getting ahead of yourself when the rewards do
come. I’m not convinced about the inherent quality (up and down) the
squad (I mean, in truth, how many REALLY good performances did the team
put in?….), but at least the group did show a measure of fight
and got up (finally….) for the guaranteed CL spot.
With so many teams choking (or almost choking) or under-performing
AND the (really) big money in the hands of so few, maybe it’s time that our
boys realize that Arsenal is as good a club as any other to come together
as a group and win things. Like others, I’m not sure about the owner and
his board being wholly committed to winning, but it’s high time the manager
and his players step up and give it their all w/o an eye towards (long-term)
finances) or their next club/contract.
Will RVP be the first to set down the marker? It seems a big moment….
We shall see….
@HighburyTerraceSteve, RVP will not do ANYTHING, until ARSENAL FC show its INTENT…
Arsenal FC need to put their cards on the table, and put their money into the pot…
If we SIGN M’Vila, and then go get a defender… and sell off some of the dead wood that is dragging this club down…
then RVP will see that change is being made, and we’re going in the right direction.
If we screw around, and do the typical Arsenal Summer of dreaming… and in-action, then he is GONE.
He’s paid his dues at Arsenal, he owes us NOTHING…
He had a great season, and he’s been healthy for a year…
so his BARGAINING POSITION, will NEVER BE HIGHER.
It’s time for RVP to cash in on his great recent play… he would be INSANE not to.
@stag133,
You honestly think that RVP doesn’t owe us anything? After we kept him despite all his constant injuries and people (yourself included iirc) to chuck him out. Yes, he has dragged our arses out the mire this season without a doubt, but do you honestly think he owes us nothing?
@George, NOTHING.
He owes the club NOTHING AT ALL. ZERO.
Why does he owe Arsenal anything?
The club OWE HIM for SAVING THIS SEASON. Without RVP, we don’t sniff the CL, and the club loses MANY MILLIONS for not making that tournament.
I fail to see how the player owes the club anything, when he just had a magnificent season.
He OWES himself and his family … to make the MOST MONEY POSSIBLE… as SOON AS POSSIBLE… because he is so injury prone in the past… so he might never get the chance to make a big salary again.
He will never be as valuable as he is RIGHT NOW.
Dag, I find any attempt to apply moral principles to football and footballers to be a bit like putting lipstick on a pig.
– Theodore Walcott has for several years been paid 60,000 pounds per week for essentially being crap. The best argument we can put forward is that “if he comes good he’s on our books”. I mean seriously.
– Nasri jumps ship and he’s labelled a mercenary and worse. Van Persie who has given us one (very) good season out of eight now weighs his options.
Where’s the morality in these things? It escapes me.
These guys are ridicuously paid people playing sport. There is no deep moral compass to find despite Arsene Wenger’s attempts to spin one his way. We overpay non-performers whilst the Manchester City’s Chelsea’s and United’s escalate wages for performers. Personally I see greater morality in paying performers but maybe that’s just me.
@Kiwi,
With Walcott, I do not think he deserves any more than £70k a week due to how inconsistent he is, but Im pretty sure the club will meet his demands just to make sure he stays here
@George, ok, again… check the stats, Theo is our 2nd leading scorer…
so Arsenal can either pay him, or sell him.
If we sell him, I won’t lose sleep…
but if we DO NOT REPLACE HIM, then f*ck that shite…
I don’t want any of our better players sold, unless there is a direct replacement…
I’ve had enough of the 2 stars out, no stars in non-sense.
@stag133,
Yes he is our second top scorer and he is a great finisher and when he is on song he is one of the most deadly players in the premier league. But I can think of 3 games this season (Im sure theres probably more but I dont remember) where he was at his best, or somewhere close to it; Newcastle home, Norwich away and Blackburn home. Now 3 or 4 or even 8 brilliant performances in a 38 game season do not deserve the amount of money he is asking for, in the same way the 6 months in 3 years Nasri gave us was not worth the extortionate amount he is picking up at City. Now sometimes Walcott is just as happy to pick up his paycheck without playing well for it, and I personally don’t think he deserves what he wants until he shows some more consistency. But hell, I don’t make the decisions and on the flipside I’d love us to try and keep him because when he is on his game there aren’t many better players at what he does. But all the same, if we wants ridiculous money then sell him off and replace him (Adam Johnson, Nicolas Gaitan are the two popping in my head)
Basically, I’ve probably drivelled on but the main points on Theo are:
. He’s not consistent
. He is brilliant when he is form but very few times is he on form
. He is not worth upwards of 85 grand a week maximum
. If he tries to demand that sort of money then we should sell him but definitely replace him
@George, Other than RVP, WHO IS A CONSISTENT OFFENSIVE PLAYER @ ARSENAL?
Answer: NOBODY
You can’t have the 2nd highest point total, and be “on form” only a few times a season.
Has he had a great year? NO. But he was pretty good, and he improved his crossing of the ball as well.
I could argue NOBODY is worth 85K a week.
That’s the price of a 2nd leading scorer on a big team in the EPL. If we don’t want to pay it, we’ll have to bring someone in, and pay them that amount, whose never done it before in the EPL.
SELL HIM?
OK, like I said, if we don’t want to pay him, and we are going to REPLACE HIM with an equal talent…
go for it… but our HISTORY says… we would SELL HIM, and KEEP THE MONEY, not attempting to replace the outgoing player with equal value/skill… it has happened over and over and over and over.
so, I’ll stick with Theo… if we have to pay a bit more than we should, so be it… at least I know he can be the 2nd leading point getter on the team, with a pretty decent total, and he CHANGES the WAY TEAMS DEFEND, because of his speed alone.
He HAS to be accounted for, even if he is having an off day, because he can blow by the entire opponents team with his speed and score or create an easy goal.
To a certain extent I agree with Kiwi (below) on all counts. Securing third was extremely stressful for all parties involved, though I should probably just speak for myself….I was STRESSED!!! (My wife and kid could barely watch the final minutes of the match w/me….) And, then, when all is said and done and they switch around to the footage of City NOT blowing it….Well, it all seems a little silly….
Still, I think it’s mostly just part and parcel of being a supporter. At heart you have to accept the results and you have to accept where the team is at, hoping for incremental improvement from that position. Given the massive set-backs last summer, I think we did pretty well and that maybe the manager should be due a bit of praise. The last minute September buys were key, but the biggest move of all was dropping (magical but lazy) Arshavin in favor of Mr. Hustle, Yossi Benayoun. It was a very bold move, which, had it backfired, would have been a real albatross around the manager’s neck.
That said, I’m concerned going forward. The whim of RVP is all that prevents us from a repeat (or worse) in this transfer season. Not only that, but I worry that there wasn’t quite enough “rebuilding” in this key “rebuilding” season. We’ve still got way too many players who are either too old (Arteta, Rosicky, RVP, Benayoun, Santos) or too young (Oxlade-Chamberlain, Sneezy, Gibbs, Ramsey, Jenks, Le Coq) and upon whom we count too much. But the real problem is that the ones in the middle (Song, TV5, LK6, Theo, Gervinho) just don’t make your heart race. (Add to that, of course, the injury concerns/cases….Diaby/Wilshere/Sagna….) Overall, the squad has reasonable depth at a certain level of quality and, if the stars line up, I think we could do a hair better on multiple fronts, but I wonder if the level is high enough to really break through and compete with the very best. Even in the BEST scenario (keeping RVP, adding Poldolski, M’Vila and maybe another one or two), I just don’t quite see it all coming together.
Still, I will stump for that scenario and hope that players get healthy, perform well and find that collective spirit and solidarity that the manager talks about (and was maybe in evidence at important junctures to get us where we got). It’s not a ton to hang one’s hat upon, but hanging together seems better than hanging apart (or something)….
“If Nasri was driven by money alone he’d be off to ”
the highest bidder be it a club in Russia or Dubai.
@Kiwi,
Before he landed at City – he met twice with United and then with PSG. It was only after Fergie had determined what Nasri was really after that Fergie declined to make a bid. PSG wanted nothing to do with him. They finally got the pay day they wanted from City.
City was not his first choice it was the choice that paid him the most money in the end. Nasri made the decision to leave in February when Arsenal submitted a new
contract to him.
@DaAdminGooner,
I’m not defending Nasri but it’s not unusual to play suitors off against one another to improve remuneration packages. We likely have no way of knowing which club Nasri ultimately preferred, I’m guessing players are a bit like us, they may have a preferred few employers but ultimately it is about which company/club strikes the deal.
The issue for Arsenal is that we weren’t attractive and it wasn’t only about the money. If we were winning something (anything) it would make the decision to leave a lot harder for our better players. Whilst we continue to participate without competing we’ll continue in the slough we’ve been in for 7 years.
@Kiwi,
I kind of disagree with you on that point Kiwi – I think Nasri only left for money. His new contract for Arsenal was offered before any of the calamaties of last season had hit us. As a matter of fact I actually think it was presented right around the Barcelona win.
At that point Arsenal were in 4 cup competitions. One of them a final. Regardless of what the outcome at that time, Arsenal were as ‘competitive’ or a ‘contender’ as Manchester United. He immediately declined that offer. If you are about winning and the team you are playing for is poised to win at that point – then in my opinion – you’d stay.
I could understand if had refused to sign the new contract say right after the season’s end. But no, his refusal happened in the season. At a time when it all looked right for Arsenal.
Honestly, I could care less about Nasri at this point. I only bring this up because he’s being chatting about here. He’s gone. Good riddance. I am tired of mercenary players.
I was happy for long suffering City fans and in some case happy for Kolo and a lesser extent Clichy. They did their time, they slugged it out over a long period of years.
Nasri came – was injured played 6 solid months and then pissed off when he had his head turned. While big money is an issue in football today, it is the growing number of mercenary players who feign love of a club and then at the slightest sign of a bigger contract move on.
Eden Hazard is the next great mercenary.
@DaAdminGooner, DAG.
If you are tired of “mercenary players”… who only have a short window of time to make as much money as they can, and one Shawcross tackle can end their careers…
why are you not TIRED of a MERCENARY CLUB… ONLY INTERESTED IN MAKING LARGE PROFITS… and NOT TRYING TO WIN TROPHIES?
That, I don’t understand…
On Nasri. Yes he’s an objectionable little git but he’s also right. He went to a club that competes and to win things and he’s done it. We spin our wheels on the money but let’s be honest it’s not that simple because money appeals to all of us. If Nasri was driven by money alone he’d be off to
Nasri saw what we all saw, Manchester City was a team on the up with the ambition (including money) to compete for trophies. And joining them meant he had to compete with like-players to get a start. He is 100% right. Arsenal are stagnating and have zero likelihood of winning anything even the domestic cups. Nasri saw what Henry saw, what Adebayor saw, what Flamini saw, what Hleb saw, what Toure saw, what Clichy saw, what Fabregas saw – it’s just Nasri is a character easy to dislike – a bit like Adebayor. But they all saw the same thing – we’re not winning anything soon.
These players are motivated in their work by a simple range of factors, much like you and me, and high up is success and money. If there is little hope of success they go. And they have. A lot of them have gone over the last 4 years – it’s almost at an embarrassing stage.
@Kiwi, 100% correct on Nasri and your comments.
it is EMBARRASSING…
and that’s why I can definitely see RVP going…
The players can get money ANYWHERE they go… whatever RVP can get at Arsenal for wages, he can get elsewhere…
and he sees players not worthy of crazy weekly paychecks, getting them and not giving the effort required to earn that pay.
So, as you said, the Henry, Hleb, Nasri, etc… saw that while playing at Arsenal is nice, you can get paid the same or more elsewhere, and play for a club that has FAR MORE AMBITION to win.
So, its nice at Arsenal for a few years… but we are a STEPPING STONE.
To change that culture, the club have to NOT SELL STARS, but BUY THEM.
Instead of selling RVP, buy M’Vila, buy Vertonghen… hell, buy the next DENNIS BERGKAMP…
Bergkamp coming to Arsenal signaled Arsenal’s intent many years ago, and it completely changed the culture
at the club.
Well, seasons over and fans are tripping over themselves in the stampede to evaluate our performance – not. What’s the stat’s Dag? How do the number of comments compare to say 3 years ago?
Throughout the year the rebuttle is to wait till the seasons-end for a meaningful evaluation and yet come seasons-end and there is little appetite to be honest or to write at all – much like throughout the season. Arsenal has become a club without drive. 4th or 3rd is it – and ‘it’ fails to inspire. We lack the aspiration and drive to get higher. You need a singleness of purpose and high-octane fuel to compete for 1st. Misleadingly we hide behind money when the real lack is drive. With each passing year it becomes evermore clear David Dein drove Arsenal and Wenger – the Graham Years, Wenger’s winning years, the Doubles, the Invincibles all happened under his watch. Exit Dein exit drive. Wenger increasingly looks part-naked, a man of many talents but not enough to win, resplendent in designer suit but with no shoes.
I can’t see us winning again under Wenger. Aside from anything else the mindset is wrong. Domestic cups are cast aside and we lack the ability to drive for 1st in the League. The Champions League is more remote than ever.
The more I look the more I see barren times for Arsenal. An ownership or board level change needs to happen because Wenger clealy lacks the singleness of purpose possessed by Ferguson and Mourinho . A new Dein is needed, someone who can either ‘work’ Wenger and compensate for his lack or let him go.
@Kiwi,
Stats are that comments are down butoverall site visits are up.
I would say that be patient on the board change. That is likely going to happen this summer. Stan is no longer under the agreement to retain the board post becoming majority share holder. Alisher USmanov continues to buy small pockets of shares. Today he bought 2 more. He will shortly hit the 30% threshold and the Premier League rules stipulate he can see the books. While he may not get a seat on the board, he will be able to talk about how the money is being
used. To me that is a whole dangerous can of worms.
@DaAdminGooner,
To me that demonstrates two things,
firstly the positive being that YAMA is gaining appeal,
but secondly the negative that Arsenal isn’t.
@Kiwi,
Er, not sure i see it that way. I’d agree appeal in YAMA is growing – always a good thing but since Arsenal are in some way the engine that drives YAMA – then aren’t they also appealing?
Here’s the thing I intend to do another ‘Great Arsenal Survey’ Next week. In general, I suspect that should the transfers that are being speculated happen and yes, we are getting snippets in but nothing as concrete as we did on M’Vila, then there is a general optimism that Arsenal could compete. Me, in general I always am optimistic at a season just because that’s how I approach things. I sense the negativity while increased still isn’t as great as you’d think. Considering I have a platform of over 20K followers on twitter, I think its a pretty good reprsentation of fan mood. Many are still firmly in the mindset that given how Wenger managed the team in this difficult time that he deserves to stay on.
Yes, there is a lot to answer for on his part and the board’s but overall there is a baited hope that is lingering.
@DaAdminGooner,
Unfortunately Stan isn’t a winner and the Usmanov aspect is a sideshow unless he takes control.
@Kiwi,
Stan is likely to appoint his son to the board as more of a direct representative. Alisher is running up the cost on Stan. The reason Arsenal are valued at a Billion pounds is because of what Usmanov is purchasing shares at. He wants control. He could make Stan an offer and Stan could walk away with £350 million more than he put into the club.
That is the prevailing thought of some of the back room affairs that could take place as early as this summer.
@Kiwi, spot on Kiwi.
Sorry to keep going on about it DAG, Im sure your sick of people asking. But, I understand the French league hasn’t finished yet, so should we wait until it finishes before we get an announcement on M’Vila? And you’re pretty sure your source is spot on about us signing him?
@George,
No worries. Yes, this won’t happen until Ligue 1 is completed. As a matter of fact M’Villa was on French radio today saying pretty much that.
There you go.
It took 1 DAY… before RVP already linked in numerous newspapers … as a ManCity target.
His agent is saying nothing.
And NASRI, telling the truth, but I am sure yall will kill him for it.
If he wanted easy money, he’d have stayed at Arsenal… where we have players who are happy to collect high wages, walking into the starting line-up.
He’s right. We do. And you all KNOW IT.
The last 4 games are a great example of our squad sleepwalking, even when the matches mean everything.
Arsenal FC need a real KICK UP THE ASS. This club needs to be shaken up… NOW.
SELL PLAYERS. BUY PLAYERS.
ASAP.
If we have to sell some names to change the LOSING CULTURE, so be it…
@stag133,
Yes we pay ridiculous money for average players like Denilson, but if he wants £200k a week after 6 good months in 3 good years he can get the hell out and have some other club pay his ridiculous wages
@George, George.
The CLUB love you, and your kind.
If you want STAR PLAYERS, you have to pay them.
RVP is by MILES our best player… and if we sell him, we might as well just SURRENDER.
And accept that we are NOT a big club, who want to win.
Maybe that’s OK with you.
@stag133, Who is Nasri to talk about players sitting on the bench collecting a paycheck and not trying? I watched a number of Man City games this season and he was either on the bench or completely uninvolved on the field. We all saw what kind of mental strength he had when he played Arsenal during the Carling Cup. He absolutely could not wait to get of the pitch. I’m not a big fan of selling players to rival teams, but I don’t really think he had much of an effect on whether or not Man City won the title. I have no problem with Arsenal selling him though. They got a huge sum of money for a guy that played half a good season last year and then totally checked out. Arsenal definitely needs players who are mentally strong and can will teams to victory. Samir Nasri is not one of those players.
@seattle gooner, Seattle.
you couldn’t have watched much ManCity.
Nasri played well, and fairly regularly. They ROTATE players, because they have a big team of many star players… its called DEPTH… and its a really good thing to have, when you play in the EPL, and numerous competitions…
EVERY year, our team is decimated by injuries… think about it!
and WHO THE FECK CARES HOW MUCH WE GOT FOR NASRI!
THE CLUB KEPT THE MONEY… How does that benefit the team on the pitch and the supporters?
Losing Nasri did NOT make the team better. Don’t kid yourself.
@stag133,
“It is annoying. The work we do is not getting the credit it deserves because we are not winning silverware. It is unfair because I think we have more merit as a club than those who have built their teams with millions of pounds whereas Arsenal have brought in young footballers, who have come here to play a certain kind of football and who have developed.” Nasri on Arsenal’s trophy drought, April 2010.
It’s obvious Samira has a bigger issue with Arsenal then any one I know has with him. He moved on got his medal and is collecting his check. I applaud Kolo and Clichy for moving, being respectful and making this more about their desire for a new challenge and not about themselves. It is plain to see in his comments that Samira is more concerned with people’s perspective of him, especiallyin France where his reputation diminishes because of Marvin Martin and
Eden Hazard’s rise. Good luck to him. If Hazard winds up in City Nasri can look at his winners medal from the bench even more.
Next subject.
@DaAdminGooner, NO DOUBT that Nasri is an egomaniac, but his POINT about Arsenal players just showing up to get a handsome check, and not caring about winning, is 1000% on the money.
(no pun intended)
And furthermore, that mentality comes from the CLUB ITSELF, who instead of attempting to WIN TROPHIES, sell their best players for MONEY…
does that not add up? the losing mentality trickles down to the players… the club is about money, not winning, so the players adopt a similar attitude.
Thats FACT.
amazing that we finished this season in third place…
nothing short of a minor miracle, when you look back at where we were
right after the ManU debacle…
We saw at the end, that basically, without Arteta, the team are completely rudderless, and struggle to be average teams, even at home…
that, must be rectified…
The defense was absolutely HORRIBLE at times… a lot of times… 49 goals is a terrible total, especially for the 3rd place team… 8th best defense?? is that some kind of badge of honor for an Arsenal team? if so, wow, have we fallen.
I am not really as convinced as DAG or others are, that RVP is “sure to sign”, even with the CL next year… he can get CL football anywhere he goes… and the opportunity to win trophies as well… so unless Arsenal plan on actually TRYING TO WIN IMMEDIATELY, I don’t think he will be so quick to sign a new contract…
We are going to have to have an ACTIVE off-season in terms of players coming and going, or… RVP is going to just wait it out…
who could possibly blame him?
So, I will give Arsene Wenger credit for guiding this team to a 3rd place finish. He deserves kudos for it… part of it comes from parity in the league, but there were some dark moments that we rose from,… and though we skidded home the last 4 matches, it worked out.
definite reason for HOPE… but its all based on WHAT WE DO in the off-season, much like the previous? 4 ? 5?
where we’ve done shit.
time for the long wait and watch saga… that is an Arsenal FC Summer.