LAST night’s embarrassment at Bradford is enough, it is time for Arsene Wenger to step down as Arsenal manager.

Many of his supporters will point to the lack of money, no backing from the board and the debts involved in paying off the stadium.

But the truth of the matter is this, Arsenal are no longer very good. A Carling Cup final we could not lose against Birmingham was lost and we destroyed AC Milan 3-0 at the Emirates last season, just a shame we lost the away leg 4-0.

Which brings me to this season, for every excellent performance (victory at Liverpool and a draw with Man City) there are hopeless ones (drawing 3-3 with Fulham, and losing to Swansea and Norwich).

Football teams don’t succeed or fail based on the business model, look at how much money has been spent by Manchester City to be six points behind Manchester United and out of the Champions League.

It is the manager who inspires, motivates, tweaks his squad with signings and the like and truth be told Arsene Wenger has not done any of that for almost three years.

How can the players be expected to challenge for trophies when the manager one minute is dismissing the Capital One Cup at the shareholders AGM then putting out his strongest side against League Two Bradford?

Those same players have also heard Wenger say finishing fourth is the ‘fifth trophy in English football’ can anyone seriously imagine Sir Alex Ferguson or Roberto Mancini saying that.

It’s no wonder such lifeless performance occur every few weeks, the players are not being pushed and rollocked in the dressing room to deliver more.

Not of all this malaise is down to Wenger, far from it, a number of players are not good enough for Arsenal Football Club or have played far from their best all season.

But none will improve or get better under this manager, a man who seems totally confident he will never be sacked, a position no manager should ever find themselves if truth be told.

Remember just eight years ago, Arsenal Football Club wandered through the whole football season without losing a game. Can you honestly see this squad doing that? Can you see this squad challenging for big honours? I can’t.

What genuinely scares me as a Gooner for 24 of my 30 years on this Earth is the reaction of some fans when you criticise Wenger. I made some strong points after the Swansea game only to be told I was a ‘plastic fan’ and that ‘We don’t need your sort supporting the Arsenal’.

I was even told that we had to applaud Swansea for playing so well and how much they deserved the three points.

I’m sorry but the last time I checked we were winning league titles around the time Swansea nearly fell out of the league itself!

And so to last night, Arsenal Football Club was made to look very ordinary by a hard-working Bradford City side who were a credit to their fans and to their likeable manager Phil Parkinson.

The cheering and elation on Twitter when Thomas Vermaelen headed home with three minutes to go to equalise showed how bad Arsenal had played.

After going out on penalties, did Wenger attack his team, did you get the sense butts were kicked? No all he could say to Sky Sports and to the waiting press pack was: “I couldn’t fault the effort of my team.”

You can imagine the dressing room collectively sigh as they realised yet again they would not be attacked for tossing away the real chance of a trophy.

I don’t know the answers, I am simply sharing my opinion on the state of a club which I love dearly.

If my team come off the pitch having lost but given everything, then I will applaud them and look forward to getting back on the horse at the next game.

But under this leadership, it now seems that we should accept losing to Norwich, to Swansea and to Bradford and be thankful. That is not a position Arsenal Football Club should be in.

I don’t want him sacked in the dead of night and spirited out of the country, never to return. English football should pay respect to, despite the current malaise, the finest foreign manager the Premier League has ever seen.

An announcement he will depart at the end of the season, a standing ovation at his last ever home game and the gratitude of millions of Gooners around the world is richly deserved.

I will be among them because without Arsene Wenger there would not be a modern day Arsenal.

Many more nights like last night though and that wonderful legacy of which he can be so proud will be tarnished and he will remembered as the man who stayed too long.

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Comments  

#39 - 2012-12-15 08:24
Why Wenger didn't use 4-4-2 formation. Sagna (RB) , Verm, M'sacker (CB), Gibbs (LB), Arteta (DM), Cazola (AM), Wilshere (LW) , Walcott (RW), Podolski and Giroud as Forward. *suggestion
#38 Clown 2012-12-14 21:12
"Football teams don’t succeed or fail based on the business model" Really? So why did /man City win the league last year??? And why did Chelsea after half a century in the wilderness suddenly become a powerhouse??? And why did Blackburn come from two lower leagues to win the Prem??? And why has Fergie won so many titles and is not related that he has outspent every manager in english history and smashed the UK transfer record 11 times??? You are an ***!
#37 Steve 2012-12-13 21:13
Quoting Gooner 318:
Steve, you make some very valid points. No, I don't know exactly what the financial situation is at Arsenal, you clearly have someone's ear at the Emirates so please do us humble, ignorant fans a favour and explain it all to us...slowly please.

Gooner318 The thing is, none of us fans know what goes on in the board room. Even Usmanov doesn't as he's not on the board, so all this stuff about get rid of SK and bring in Usmanov (a la chelsea) is based on what we might want to see rather than what we know will happen. I have tried to find articles where Usmanov states his intentions for AFC if he were to take over. The open letter sent to AFC https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18722962 is the closest I can find to a statement of intent but note that it carefully calls for the club to invest more in players but does NOT say that AU would provide this investment if he were to gain control of the club!

As I said at the end of my post, for me, the best option is to wait and see where we are at the end of the season but we also have the mini-milestone of the jan transfer window. Given that one of our current "goal machines" Gervinho will be away with Ivory Coast and we might lose another (Theo), I think we all might logically expect AW to splash some cash! Here's hoping anyway!!!
#36 Steve 2012-12-13 21:01
Quoting M:
STEVE: Then for what a club change their coach? Just for fooling around? Absolutely for trophy. I don't mention what trophy we gonna win, we still have a good chances in UEFA CL. So, what's your problem? Although we currently at sixth in EPL, we still have a chances to be TOP3!


M, I understand your point about changing coach/manager to win trophies and believe me when I say that there are few people out there that want that for AFC than me. My point was that you say Pep G may be available next summer but you then say "maybe we can win a trophy this season". How is Pep being available NEXT year going to help us win this (football) year?
If we were to sack AW now, Pep is not available so we have to do a chelsea and get in an interim manager. With a squad low on confidence, being booed by the fans, is an interim manager (who knows they will go in favour of Pep in the summer) the best option??? I stand by my point that we should wait and see where we are at the end of the season!
#35 Dinoafceie 2012-12-13 16:58
Yes Wenger must go im afraid to say but the board is still a big problem and while they still have there heads in the sdand this club will not copmpete at the highest level for honours
#34 Pop 2012-12-13 05:35
Yet another year where we say "wait and see where we are at the end of the season" Are we to be fooled again. Maybe a champions league place but not able to compete with the big teams (and now smaller teams) is a normal situation for us. Why wait until the season end? change now please.
#33 M 2012-12-13 03:17
STEVE: Then for what a club change their coach? Just for fooling around? Absolutely for trophy. I don't mention what trophy we gonna win, we still have a good chances in UEFA CL. So, what's your problem? Although we currently at sixth in EPL, we still have a chances to be TOP3!
+1 #32 Gooner 318 2012-12-12 16:01
Steve, you make some very valid points. No, I don't know exactly what the financial situation is at Arsenal, you clearly have someone's ear at the Emirates so please do us humble, ignorant fans a favour and explain it all to us...slowly please.
-2 #31 Steve 2012-12-12 15:53
Quoting M:
I heard about Pep Guardiola, he said Arsenal is in his top-list club in England. His agent said, he's available this summer transfer. If this really happens, maybe we can win a trophy this season. I'm not saying that Wenger is bad but for now, Wenger need to go.


If Pep is available next summer, how can we win a trophy this season? What's your source for Pep being available - please don't quote a newspaper or other journalistic source, they're about as reliable as a paper parachute!
#30 M 2012-12-12 15:16
I heard about Pep Guardiola, he said Arsenal is in his top-list club in England. His agent said, he's available this summer transfer. If this really happens, maybe we can win a trophy this season. I'm not saying that Wenger is bad but for now, Wenger need to go.
#29 Folarin. 2012-12-12 14:38
Wenger is on £7m annually,and they argue that none of this is his fault. He is pretty much part of the problem. He should go!
#28 Steve 2012-12-12 14:18
Yes, we're in a bad run at the moment and yes we lost to a league 2 side last night on pens (who have won their last 11 games and not lost a pen shootout).

BUT:

1. Give AW to the end of the season and see where we are. I think if we don't get CL football he will go anyway.

2. People who say our players are lazy and not trying, are you having a laugh! We had 28 attempts on goal last night, hit the woodwork twice in normal play and twice in the pens and had 63% possession. I lost count of the number of times we got behind the defence and cut the ball back. That is hardly "not trying". If you said our finishing was really bad then I'm with you 100%. The Swansea game would be a better example of us lacking effort I think!

3. Ok, so you want AW to go, great. Some posters have said "I'm sick of people saying who do we replace him with" BUT that is exactly the primary question, so what is your answer? Secondary question, why would AW be constantly linked with jobs like Real Madrid, if he has "lost the plot"?

It seems to me as a fellow "expert" and fan just like you, that our problem this season seems to be converting chances into goals (see point 2 above). Yes we need a proven striker but that was what AW thought he was getting with Giroud, Gervinho and Podolski. These aren't kids, they are seasoned internationals who have cost us a fair bit. I saw plenty of support on these forums for us buying these players and others such as Per M, who seems to go from hero to zero and back every week.

Some people say, get Usmanov in and Kroenke out as the board are just lining their pockets. Sorry, do you REALLY know what the financial situation at Arsenal is and what the likes of Usmanov would do if he took over the club - didn't think so!

At the end of the season if we have not won anything and/or not got CL footie then I will also be thinking that AW has had his time but I for one will be waiting to see what he does in January and where we finish come May.
-1 #27 Gooner 318 2012-12-12 14:16
I'm afraid this article is spot on. However, I wonder if Mr. Wenger is simply too loyal to his players,the ones who "gave their best" ? Really ? Who chased lost causes ,tracked back and was sweating when he came off ? Jack and Santi maybe,the rest,forget it. That lot have no heart,the club is just another employer and the board are a joke.I warned my 14 yr old son about this when he started supporting them 8 years ago and nothing has changed, I'm gutted, my club is back in the mid 80's.Watch those impostors up the road win the FA Cup,that would just about do it for me.Bring in Bergkamp and Henry.
-3 #26 Varnagooner 2012-12-12 12:59
it was so embarrassing last nite,as if the whole of AW's legacy collapsed with TV5 penalty miss,true that team is a bunch of mediocre,lifeless performers who don't give a piss for their manager's legacy,everything has to start from scratch and it will take years and years to consolidate...Rome wasn't built in a day, after all...
#25 Chakabelli 2012-12-12 12:17
This squad of players are not really as bad as we make them out to be. What is lacking is a kick up their individual or collective butts as the case maybe, new coaching methods, better selection and tactical deployment. We should stop sounding as if its an impossible or even uphill task. We need a manager wit guts and a footballing brain
-1 #24 Steve. 2012-12-12 11:57
"WENGER OUT BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE".
+4 #23 @flashygunner 2012-12-12 11:36
Van Persie may just be right, everyone at arsenal in their comfort zone will never be troubled about bad performances or lack of trophies. Average players on high salaries and one of the highest paid managers in europe living on past glories and bloated ego complete with a board content with money in their pogkets - THE COMFORTABLES. The FANS are the only ones suffering, what pity.
#22 Steve. 2012-12-12 11:22
Arsene don't be too upset about Arsenal's
result at Bradford last night,it could be a good thing,now you can consentrate on winning the Premiership,
"JUST JOKING ARSENE",you couldn't win an argument,your about as good as that
team you put out at Bradford,just one word "CRAPP". "WHY DON'T YOU,JUST WALK AWAY ARSENE,AND DO US ALL A FAVOUR".
+2 #21 MakosJ 2012-12-12 11:15
The answer to this problem is a world class striker like Falcao. And Wenger caused himself all these. he sold his goal machine RVP. man u had rooney, they added RVP and that'/s where you see manager that has desire and hunger for trophy. Arsenal was beaten by Swansea at home and manage to score two penalties against WBA, look at how goal scoring chances came begging last night against lowly rated Bradford. He can still make amend as January transfer window is around the comer and my only plea is that he should bring in a highly rated strike force to redeem his image, else his time is up at our great Arsenal FC.
#20 SAM 2012-12-12 11:12
Quoting Andy:
Jurgen Klopp would be the best replacement in my opinion. Look at how well Dortmund perform. Less money than us but a stronger squad. Klopp has managed to unearth and coach top talents like Goetze whilst keeping his top players at the club like Reus and Lewandowski. Obviously he's a man-manager and has achieved so much with so little. Just like Wenger used to be!!

@Andy - but will Klopp be any good when the board refuse to keep th top players so there is money in the bank for their bonuses and for Stan's company: Kroenke Sports Enterprises
#19 keown 2012-12-12 11:09
Sorry but van persie going to man u now this its the final straw! its time to go wenger, you have lost your way, tactics and signings sent what they used to be
-1 #18 leksman2002 2012-12-12 10:59
In understanding the kind of situation we arsenal supporters find ourselves, we need to know the kind of relationship the board have with Wenger. It is unreal to have this kind of performance from a manager and still have him still running the team.

The truth is Wenger has peaked at arsenal and time has overtaken his style of football. A dignified exit is the option before we fall out of the qualification for champions league


The set of players lack collective ambition, discipline and self respect. It is time for each player to each their soul and to determine if they are giving their best to the fans who at this economic crunch paying premium to watch them play.
-2 #17 Eddie 2012-12-12 10:55
Aw has run out of ideas, so too the board. I am happy this happening coz at times when we advise, he responds by" buy who, and where does he play" Good riddance that he brings cheap players that he calls top class. Reading , get ready your turn next Monday!
#16 Ace-K 2012-12-12 10:55
replace him with another "Wenger", of course! How many did know of Wenger before being appointed at Highbury? It is part of Board's responsibility to find another potentially title winning manager. Why are fans/gooners fearing the fear itself? The old Wenger is gone since 4 - 5 years ago. Time for new philosophy! (end of season!)
-1 #15 Nadez 2012-12-12 10:53
Quoting Arnold Thompson:
Bradford City Supporter...

Dont blame Wenger,he is the best manager you will ever get...We had more desire to win in every part of the field...your players did not have the heart and fight in their belly to compete with us..our team cost less, than one of your overpaid STARS


Isn't it Wenger's responsibility to BUY, MOTIVATE, TRAIN players?

(I'm not even talking about strategy tactics and gameplan)
#14 Arnold Thompson 2012-12-12 10:50
Bradford City Supporter...

Dont blame Wenger,he is the best manager you will ever get...We had more desire to win in every part of the field...your players did not have the heart and fight in their belly to compete with us..our team cost less, than one of your overpaid STARS
+2 #13 Liam 2012-12-12 10:46
Celtic fan in peace - it's painful that Arsenal aren't challenging for anything anymore, the league as a whole is worse for it and to have lost that quick, technical and exciting style of football is a real loss. While Wenger has to be given every credit for the success he had it has simply been too long for him to continue without even being questioned. I don't know if he should go, it's not my team, but he should at least be addressing the problems - admitting the problems! - and being watched for signs of progress. He seems to have such an unwavering belief in his ability to pick young players and mould them, a la Henry, that he hasn't noticed that most of the young players he buys are overpriced and just can't be expected to do the job. He should be looking for a mix, youth and top talent, rather than constantly thinking it will all work out if he just buys expensive kids. They're not all going to be Fabregas...

Good luck, it will be a tricky few years.

(Oh and being Scottish I would argue that Ferguson is probably the most successful foreign manager the EPL has had!)
+2 #12 larry 2012-12-12 10:44
Show me a team who's happy to come forth and I will show you a team who will never come first.
+2 #11 Nadez 2012-12-12 10:37
Wenger replacement? WHOEVER!
Wenger is NOT irreplaceable. He is quite far from being Alex Ferguson too.

Why the club like Barcelona have the guts appoint someone like Tito Villanova.

We need someone who can set high standards for himself and be responsible for achieving them.

Not just "fail, ok, I'll try again". There are quite a few managers who are eager to prove themselves! Younger and with fresher ideas too!
-2 #10 Daz 2012-12-12 10:34
Can't believe people saying who do we replace him with??? It's not hard to find a manager who can get a football team made with players earning £70k a week to beat teams like bradford, Norwich and Swansea. There are countless managers out there who would bring us back ot where we belong
+1 #9 Peltonboy 2012-12-12 10:34
Yes Wenger should go now, to many mealy mouthed excuses and platitudes, however that alone will not solve the problem. It is even more important that there is a drastic shake up behind the scenes. The first people out the door should be the faceless advisors that Silent Stan has put in place quickly followed by the remains of the old Board. Why do Hill-Wood and Chips Keswick et al merit places? They sold their shares for 30 pieces of silver. We need people in place who love the club with a passion, not number crunchers.
-1 #8 KM 2012-12-12 10:33
All well said !!! And for Huk above, Arsenal did not start with Wenger as a coach. It's like what happens when he clocks 80 ??? He'll still be manager or what ???
Its better he walks out before his Legacy goes to the Tatters....
+3 #7 Bantammenace 2012-12-12 10:32
Arsenal simply didn't know how to play against a traditional 442 formation. It was only when Rosicky came on that they got anyone playing between the lines.
Bradford were quite happy for Arsenal to get down the flanks and then to deal with whatever came into the box.
-1 #6 Michael Vines 2012-12-12 10:32
David Moyes would be the perfect replacement for Arsenne Wenger, because the players need a kick up the backside.
Arsenal dressing room at the moment must be very cosy, they are all spoilt and Arsenne
will not let them be upset! We would not be cutting off our noses, we would be investing in the future
-2 #5 Barmacafc 2012-12-12 10:28
Sick and tired of hearing the same old crap "who will replace him" Wenger is well past his sell buy date - this is not the same late 90's early 2000's Wenger this is a guy who's decision making and push for profit is killing Our Football club there are alot of managers we could get to do a better job Wenger Time To Go
+3 #4 Andy 2012-12-12 10:25
Jurgen Klopp would be the best replacement in my opinion. Look at how well Dortmund perform. Less money than us but a stronger squad. Klopp has managed to unearth and coach top talents like Goetze whilst keeping his top players at the club like Reus and Lewandowski. Obviously he's a man-manager and has achieved so much with so little. Just like Wenger used to be!!
+3 #3 SAM 2012-12-12 10:25
For those who say get rid of wenger & replace him with who? O'neill? - not doing well, Moyes? - never won anything so why change, Jose? - only goes where there are £billions to spend, Pep? why would he come when the board prefer to sell the best players rather than paying the wages they want.

It's not 'Wenger has not won anything in 7 years' it's 'Arsenal haven't won anything since Dein got booted out'. Get rid of PHW, Ivan, Stan & bring back Dein so Wenger can go back to being a full-time manager again rather than doing board room activities which are a conflict of interest.
+3 #2 Franny 2012-12-12 10:21
Quoting Huk:
All well and good but who do we replace him with??? Harry Redknapp? Sam Allerdyce? Martin O'Neil? Would rather stick with Wenger then any of those or their like and i can't see Jose Mourino or Pep Guardiola wanting to come to us so why are we so willing to cut off our nose to spite our face???


No manager can salvage anything from this team. Wenger has royally ***ed this club up. His legacy will be a squad of *** players on ridiculously high wages that no one will be able to offload. Too many signings are required to fix things and too many *** players on high wages that we'll never be able to offload.

Can Wenger fix this? I doubt it. Can any manager? Probably not this mess for at least 3 years. Quick fix would be Usmanov but just like Wenger resigning; that won't happen either.
#1 Huk 2012-12-12 10:17
All well and good but who do we replace him with??? Harry Redknapp? Sam Allerdyce? Martin O'Neil? Would rather stick with Wenger then any of those or their like and i can't see Jose Mourino or Pep Guardiola wanting to come to us so why are we so willing to cut off our nose to spite our face???