The 3-1 home loss to Aston Villa on Saturday was the culmination of a summer of dithering, inactivity and a lack of desire in the transfer market, while all our rivals strengthened in ways that we should have.
Despite promises from Ivan Gazidis and the board that the largest transfer sum of money in the club’s history was available, and would be used, to effectively strengthen the team, a transfer expenditure of zero hangs over the club like a solitary dark rain cloud.
The current crisis at Arsenal
These empty promises are the reason why fans are calling for the board’s heads more vocally than ever before, and why even the strongest Wenger supporters are now unable to effectively defend him.
The reason for our general incompetence is that Arsene Wenger is not the same manager as he was ten years ago, when he formed what was in my opinion the greatest league side to ever take the field, that went an unprecedented season unbeaten.
Flash forward to the present Arsene Wenger, and the side he forms ten years later loses its first game of the season to a mid-table Aston Villa, and it not being a huge surprise due to a threadbare squad and a general lack of quality.
The reason may be because of modern football catching up with the revolutionary manager, and him unwilling to adapt. An example of this is his insistence that he refuses to overpay for a player e.g. Suarez, Higuain.
The latter example strikes a particularly sour note. I am of the opinion that Gonzalo Higuain was exactly what Arsenal needed, and was well worth the £34m Napoli paid for him. Hearing after the move about his disappointment of not joining Arsenal makes me want to just give up following football, it was a move that was perfect for all involved.
David Dein appears to be the key factor
In my opinion the absence of David Dein, Wenger’s former wingman, has a lot to do with our problems. Dein was ousted by the board for a difference of opinion in the direction the club should take, among other political reasons. He was and still is a huge supporter of the club, attending most games and suffering the losses as hard as most of us fans.
Dein and Wenger were fantastic together, and remain close friends to this day. The direction the board has taken since, the major move to appoint Stan Kroenke as the effective owner, has desensitised the board, turning it into more of a money making machine than a collective looking out for the best interests of the success of its football.
The ousting of Dein now speaks volumes. Suggesting he is not welcome because of his passion for the club overriding the need for enhanced turnover and a sustainable business model.
Need to modernise the board
Arsenal will not make progress back towards the pinnacle of football with Ivan Gazidis taking up the role Dein used to flourish in. Dein has Arsenal in his blood, he’s a football man, and he has already shown he knows what it takes to make Arsenal the best club in the country.
Dein’s partnership with Alisher Usmanov in Red & White Holdings suggests the former Arsenal shareholders made a colossal mistake selling their shares to Stan Kroenke. Nina Bracewell-Smith actually took to Twitter yesterday to say she regrets selling her shares to Stan Kroenke, who offered her a higher price than Red & White Holdings, her selfishness at the time prioritising the right owner being brought in.
Usmanov attends many games a season, is a passionate supporter, and wants what is best for the club, regardless of money. Although us fans pride ourselves on being a self-sustainable club, that may also be the reason we are falling further behind Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea season after season.
Usmanov is the richest man in the UK, blowing Roman Abramovich out of the water with an astronomical worth of over £13bn. If investing money in the squad is something that needs to happen, the club would be foolish not to involve him. This is another indicator of the anti-modern stance in the Arsenal board, while other clubs adapt and flourish, overtaking us in the league standings every year e.g. Manchester City.
The solution
For me, Wenger has past his effective era. Gazidis basically called him out to do something by saying how much money is available to us this summer, and all Wenger has done is sound ever more irrational and confused in press conferences, saying there are no players to buy and asking anyone to name players in the world that are better than the ones he has, something any Arsenal fan could do.
The ageing board is being selfish, looking out for their own pockets while the stature of the club suffers. The board needs to be replaced with those who care about the club. Legends of the club and true Arsenal men such as Peter Hill Wood and Danny Fiszman along with David Dein have been replaced by those who care less about football and more about money.
Dein is known and respected by many of the major European clubs, and needs returning to the board as soon as possible. Stan Kroenke needs to be replaced by someone who cares about the club, or just take an interest himself and outline what he intends to do to help.
To be clear, I’m not an anti-Wenger supporter, what he’s done at this club is incredible. I just hope that he is remembered for his glory years, and not the increasingly frustrating stubborn manager he is being labelled as currently. He is in serious danger of destroying his legacy of those trophy-winning teams of ten years ago.
If something isn’t done to save the stature of the club, our best players will not stick around. Our inability to compete at the highest level has seen our best players leave consistently, with Francesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri and Robin van Persie all moving on to win trophies.
If the problems persist, do you really see Jack Wilshere staying at the club? Especially as an inferior player such as Tom Cleverley wins trophy after trophy with Manchester United. I know Jack is Arsenal through and through, but no one would be able to blame him if he moved on to fulfil his career aspirations at a club that could win trophies.
I hope that the individuals running the club ‘man up’, stop being so selfish, and do what is best for the club. If they don’t, the future of the club looks bleak. Arsene Wenger and the board have exactly two weeks to avoid a catastrophic season and ensure their reputation remain untarnished.
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