Finally, we have something more to talk about than the golden 4-5 managers I’ve been tracking these past few weeks. Spanish media has linked us with the Basque manager Unai Emery, who has departed PSG after failing to move them to the next level in the Champions League.
Arsenal fans are starting to come to terms with the reality that Allegri is a dream that might not have much reality to it. I have no basis for saying that deal is dead outside the fact he still has unfinished business with Juventus, his press mutterings indicate he’ll be there next season, and his sporting director saying he thinks Juve will come to a solid agreement when they speak this summer.
FOOTBALL IS MAD FAM, so don’t rule anything out, but I think he’s a sexy damp dream too far this season…
That means we have to be real with what’s available on the market, and also start to tune ourselves into the brief that Ivan’s hawking around Europe…
- Rejuvenate a club that’s lost its way
- Bring a broken squad together around a new footballing philosophy
- Be an actual coach: instilling discipline, tactical awareness plus out and out winnertivity™
- Do a lot with a little: purse strings will be tight blud
- Suck it up in a management structure where you’ll not have full control
- Sell Ospina
That’s why Emery is interesting. The man beat Madrid with Almeria (more here) leading them to a top half of the table finish. He consistently took Valencia to 3rd place. No one talks about Spartak Moscow. Then he took Sevilla, a selling club, won 3 Europa League titles in a row, the last one beating Liverpool in Klopp’s first half season. He’s a deep thinker, super pragmatic and his best work has been with teams that are in the shitter, or just skint.
One of the big critiques of him at PSG is the players didn’t care for him. He was deemed passive.
‘There is no fear of rebuke for poor displays or selfishness as a significant chunk of the first team will be picked no matter what. As a result PSG lack any semblance of rigour or discipline and players dally in possession and struggle to find any intensity.’
Arsenal is a mess, but we’re still bigger than Sevilla. Could Emery manage man-monsters like Ozil?
Or, do issues like this sit at the owner’s feet? PSG pride mega names over the proper casting of personalities. Remember, not even Carlo – the master of egos – could manage effectively there.
The other question is: if he can’t make PSG European Champions, how is he going to make us special?
This is something I think about a lot (twice a day at least), management is a flip of a coin at the highest level. Pep G has fucked the Champions League twice in a row for City, and he never made a final with Bayern Munich. Does that make him a bad manager, or just unlucky? I also think there’s something in the idea that PSG might be so dominant in Ligue 1, they lose their edge when they play a proper team because they’re coasting most of the season.
This is the madness of football, because he failed badly at PSG, fans won’t want him. Though take a moment to look back on PSGs style of play this season, it’s hard not to be impressed, until you realise they dropped £300m on talent to win a league and a cup.
Anyway, back to the list of items CEOs look for in a modern manager:
- A footballing philosophy the CEO and the fans can buy into (which is why I’m amazed Mourinho is still at United)
- A coach who has the charisma and passion to transmit that vision to the players (which is why all the Twitter muppets who used ‘pashun’ as a derogatory snipe at English fans are eating their hat now every hipster manager is a touchline gangster)
- A leader who can make the players better, get bums on seats and elevate the club in a saturated global football market (which is why you’re increasingly seeing stable managers who win ugly moved on for the folk who are a little bit more ambitious about putting on a show)
You’ll have to let me know whether you think Emery can deliver on the above.
Finally, before I go. There was a lot of debate yesterday after I gave Mesut a roasting online. My take on his agent’s comments are as followed.
Keown has won 3 PL titles. 3 FA Cups. A Euro trophy. He’s an Invincible.
Who the f*ck is his agent to plough into an actual legend of the club?
Mesut Ozil isn’t a legend. I don’t care about his POTY with Germany. I don’t care about his chances created record. I don’t care about his World Cup win.
He’ll always be a luxury player who never really delivered on what we wanted. He’s not a warrior. He’s rarely been a leader (though he’s shown he can be both the latter when he fancies is). He almost never shows up in the big games. He disappears in the second half of every season, even when he’s rested.
I find it amazing that on the one hand, we’re complaining that our strikers don’t get any service, and on the other hero-ing Mesut as a chance creator. We literally have two of the most potent strikers in Europe lining up for us and we’ve lost all our away games this year. Which is it? A lack of finishers? Or a lack of service?
Back to Mesut, he has no right to pop off at Martin Keown, who certainly doesn’t have had the talent of the German, but he had 10x the heart, 10x the commitment, and the trophies to back it.
There has never been a question around Martin’s dedication, the man has never taken a day off before the season was out for a sore back, he’s never ducked an away leg at a team that might kick him, and though he may have kissed the ring of Wenger over the years and been an enabler, it’s mostly because he’s so desperate to impact the team he loves.
If you don’t quite comprehend why Martin Keown is a more important player than Mesut Ozil, you never watched him.
Keown is a legend. Also worth noting that even when his career was coming to an end, he’d have been working with the younger defender, passing on the knowledge, helping them through the Invincibles season.
Ozil doesn’t measure up for Arsenal. World Cups don’t matter in the debate about Ozil. Messi and Ronaldo, two of the GOATs, have never won the World Cup.
Too many people just don’t get it… Mesut doesn’t care about Arsenal. Europe knows it, that’s why no one bar Arsenal made an offer for his services.
He’ll always be remembered as a supremely gifted talent that didn’t have the stomach to elevate Arsenal.
That’s me done, see you in the comments.
Also it’s irrelevant that the French league is stronger than the Chinese league because both are irrelevant leagues.
It’s like saying which team is better – West Brom or Burnley? Who honestly cares? Both are irrelevant to any top level considerations
We’ll hear more from wenger on this and other things, I’m sure.
http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11670/11368527/arsene-wenger-says-he-would-not-swap-emirates-for-more-arsenal-trophies
AH
Making a fool of himself is what he does best.
Football may be paying obscene wages and transfer fees, but when Arsenal join the club and start following the same example there seem to be an awful lot of media pundit, journalists and of course posters on Le Grove who criticise us for doing the same as other major clubs. The facts are that the only way that Arsenal can compete in the current market particularly if we do not qualify/perform in Champions League is to do precisely that. What is more relevant is that some of these add ons should be performance related. I would rather pay Aubameyang 50%… Read more »
Tony
“AH
Making a fool of himself is what he does best”
Says the biggest tool out of them all…
Stroller
Agreed
Some want us to compete with the big boys regarding wages, transfer fees etc and then when we do, criticise the club…
TonyD
Whatever anyone thinks of him- I’ll read his memoir.
China
It seems you have no clue about the French Ligue. It’s probably the league with the most abundant talent….and it’s scattered all over the league. The overwhelming supremacy of PSG isn’t unique since Bayern does the same in Germany.
Comparing I
Ligue un to th Chinese league?
Are you serious?
Emirates Sometimes I wonder if you read what you write…just for the laughs. If you understand why Ozil was given a mega deal then why would you go on to say that contracts need to be mananged better in the future. The entire Ozil deal was badly managed from the beginning. We let him push us into a corner and a then caved in like a pack of soggy cigarettes. We paid him what he wouldn’t have earned on a free transfer to any other club. There’s no club that would have paid Ozil 350k weekly coming in on a… Read more »
AH
Wenger’s memoir won’t be short of readers,even his strongest of critics would take a stab at it.
Alexander he’s been the biggest champion of self sustainability let’s not paint him as some martyr now that he’s finally leaving.
And I’d also read his memoir if I thought that he’d give an honest truthful explanation of some of his decisions from over the years. I’d read it for an explanation of the Park Chu Young transfer alone. Love to know what that was about
I pretty sure Wenger won’t be writing memoirs anytime soon. The man is going to work until they pick him up from a burner and dump him into a morgue.
He has no life.
That contract stuff isn’t too surprising really why else would Aubameyang join us and that’s why Sanchez joined United instead of waiting for City. The bonus for Sanchez being involved in 40 goals and assists is smart on United’s behalf but Arsenal promising a striker, who’s capable of 30 goals a season, a bonus if he’s involved in 25 goals a season is a joke really and an extra 50,000 if he plays and we win? I mean 50,000 and 300,000 isn’t that much I suppose but it sets a future precedent and we’ve been pissing money away for years.… Read more »
Roll on 5 o’clock tomorrow when he fucks off with most of the dead beats that have been turfed out today. Can’t wait for the rebuild on and off the field, and the arsenal twitter feed can bin the nauseating merciarsene feed. Utter bullshit, we are reborn tomorrow.
I know some sycophants of his might disagree but you know a book by him is likely to be boring af. He’s not an exciting man clearly
Marko
I’m not disputing that.
What I want to know is whether he had money all along but refused to spend on principle.
Silly contract terms for sure. Well at least Aub hopefully would take a shot to try win (an get the bonus) than tippi tappi.
In another world, Wenger would have been criminalised for mismanagement of so much financial resources.
Your Comment Here
China is doing what is known as “doing a Bamford”…..
Making a stupid comment then tying himself in knots thereafter.
I’ll comment on the money question later (maybe) but another reason to read Wenger’s book — or at least reviews of it — is to get the details on (i) what transpired behind the scenes over the past month and (ii) what was said at that dinner he had with Kroenke last summer.
Aubergine aka Northern Cunt religiously defending his God. His devoted I’ll give him that.
Oh dear, China is having a fucking mare here…
“France has not been a competitive league by european standards during my life time“
Wtf does that even mean?
You’re comparing (amazingly…) Ligue Un to the Chinese league. There’s absolutely nothing you can compare on any relative scale except pitch dimensions, and shape of the ball. What a stunningly ignorant assertion.
Heavy talk that Allegri has become a firmer favourite for the job, the Sunday papers are due to run stories of it.
With the backroom culling this week circa 6 members, it points to a considerable appointment who will come with a familiar entourage of backroom staff.
Dare I say it, but looks like Arsenal are clearing house for an Allegri landing.
If anyone was wondering why Northern/Aubergine is here, it’s clear that he is here to troll Le Grovers, defend Arsene Wenger, and bully and insult anyone he doesn’t regard as a “real” Arsenal fan.
Cue insults against me.
Bamford
Without provoking your usual rabid bollocks, I doubt for a s3cond you’d give any credence to words said in any Wenger book.
If he unveils things that suggest he operated under unknown duress you’ll gleefully rebuke it all and claim he’s being excessive to sell copies etc. Basically, the book won’t do anything but further the Wenger utterings.
Be nice if you, and others, could just let it go.
Whether France is a competitive league is a relative question. Compared to those of England, Spain, Germany and Italy… probably not. However compared to the likes of Belgium, Portugal or Scotland — probably yes. Where France excels is in its youth development. All over France are good football academies producing solid players. PSG’s recent immense spending power makes the French league look weaker than it is. If you take PSG out of the equation for the moment, it is a very evenly matched league with good teams full of footballing history and pedigree. After all they must be doing something… Read more »
If the bookies are right, then we’re down to Allegri and Arteta as the clear favourites. If it’s Allegri, then no-one can argue with that. However, if it’s Arteta then I’ll truly be gobsmacked.
Yeah, that was a really dumb comment, China. Going to PSG is in no way, shape or form comparable to playing in China.
One, Ligue 1 may not be as competitive as the PL, but it’s still a pretty damn good league.
Two, PSG play and genuinely compete in the CL, and for many top players, the CL is just as important as (if not more important than) domestic competition.
Three, at PSG you’re playing with top class players (Rabiot, Verratti, Mbappe, Motta, Cavani, Di Maria, etc.), not nobodies.
Four, you’re living in Paris, not Xianjing.
Was a silly remark.
“Dare I say it, but looks like Arsenal are clearing house for an Allegri landing.”
Please let this be true, please let this be true, please let this be true!
If there is any justice, considering what we have had to endure since moving to the Emirates… please let this be true!!!
Wonder if Wenger will mention in his book what he continually publicly stated back in 08/09/10: that more than three signings destabilises the technical ‘security’ of a team and how much he valued continuity, and by by extension strongly implying he wouldn’t enjoy having money and being forced to spend. As we can see by our sharp decline since we spent big, it’s clear he’s not comfortable doing that and our circumstances a decade ago suited him and his managerial style down to a tee.
I will hazard a guess that that won’t make the final cut though.
Wenger’s book will be an absolute trill. Forget the fact he failed recently, he’s a very knowledgeable man with, I believe, so much to reveal. I can’t wait
Remember when we were scouting Lille and Wenger decided to pick up Gervinho instead of Hazard (when they were there at the same time?)
Or when we were scouting BvB and Wenger decided to pick up Thomas Eisfield instead of Goetze?
How did that work out?
Picking Arteta when great coaches like Allegri, Jardim, Sarri, Neigelsmann, Ancelotti, Emery and Tuchel are obtainable is a similar mistake, imo.
Would love Allegri if he comes. Will honestly take Emery too. Jardim of course. But really, no to Arteta. But more importantly, I would like us to tempt players like Rabiot with our managerial appointment. 1 year left, probably bored of France. Wanted to leave when he was 19/20
Mystic
Does Allegri (presumptuous I know) favour players of a certain background at all?
I feel like his signings have been very mixed as that goes. No real dependence on a particular nationality or market.
“Remember when we were scouting Lille and Wenger decided to pick up Gervinho instead of Hazard (when they were there at the same time?)”
You can’t tell me Wenger didn’t know Hazard was the better. We probably didn’t Ave enough money to go in for him. Either that or we couldn’t sell any serious ambition to him.
That might also be how we appoint our manager. Missing out on the top coaches because we can’t pay them or our ambition would not match their status
“Wonder if Wenger will mention in his book what he continually publicly stated back in 08/09/10: that more than three signings destabilises the technical ‘security’ of a team …” Unless you get trounced and humiliated by a rival 8-2 at their ground and you need to panic buy to make it appear you’re doing something. In that window he brought in Arteta, Santos, Park, Benayoun (loan) and Mertesacker… Given Arteta’s less than ideal introduction to the club I cannot believe given his inexperience, he’s even in the frame for the manager/head coach position. Panic buy player, panic buy manager… don’t… Read more »
CC
I think he generally looks at how a player fits into his plans (profile and execution) and goes for them. I am sure he always uses a controller in the middle which is what Rabiot is. Would be delighted if he came. Actually prefer him to Fabinho but both are my 1st and 2nd choices for midfield generals.
Champagne No, that’s not right. I will gladly weigh all that Wenger has to say, and I won’t dismiss anything he says out of hand. However I’m also not simply going to accept the truth of everything he says as he has some reason to present things in the best possible light. That he has had a reasonable amount of money to spend since 2011 or so, though, is not really a question, IMO. That he had far more than 11m to spend in 2015 is also not a question, IMO. How much he had between 2002-2006 and between 2007-2011… Read more »
Gervinho vs Hazard was definitely a money thing. One was 32 mil and the other 13 mil, in 2012….
You’d do well to convince me we’d pay that disparity in this upcoming window for speculative talent. Particular circumstances sure, but every team that operates to a strict budget would weigh that up. Chelsea didn’t at that time.
Mystic
Look at our total expenditure that year and our cash reserves after. We definitely had the money to sign Hazard. Wenger just didn’t want to spend that kind of money, esp. not on a player the whole world was talking about, and he was also trying to prove that he was the smartest guy in the room and could see a rough diamond in Gervinho where others just saw quartz.
Banford
Ehh, remains to be seen. I’m near certain there’ll be a more than generous amount of dismissing out of hand come the sale of his book. Fair enough though
Pierre Are you going to be carrying Wenger’s bags for him on Sunday. Enjoy where ever you go with him. FYI I wouldn’t believe a single word than he utters. Too many ludicrous excuses lies and bullshit has emanated from his mouth, which is why the club is in the poor position it is, as well as our position in the league with no CL football again. But hey you keep adoring your messiah in your cult like fashion with Victoria, Northern Veg and Charlie as he doesn’t seem to like hearing anything against Wenger. To new beginnings with the… Read more »
“However I’m also not simply going to accept the truth of everything he says as he has some reason to present things in the best possible light.”
There is a reason they are called Me Moirs 😉
Paulinho
Good point re Wenger’s stated opposition to signing more than three players in a window on account of the alleged “destabilizing” effect this would have on the squad.
Important to note that something like this thought was behind his “socialist” wage model; Wenger believed that disparity in wages between players could also “destabilize” the team and the team spirit. Yet another idea of his that held us back and had absolutely nothing to do with the amount of money he had available to him.
Well it will be a book, but same thing.
I’m not commenting further than this because it’s moot at this point…
however the notion any manager in world football would actively avoid buying players they consider superior quality is bizarre. I can appreciate the poor decisions to think what you have is better than it is, but anyone peddling the notion Wenger didn’t buy players he knew were better, and could afford, is how can I put this?….reaching…..
ANYWAY…..
Anyone watched the Netflix series on Juve/Allegri? Do it, then come back and let your excitement out on here. It’s a fire lighter.
Allegri would be fantastic. Let’s hope these recent reports are accurate.
Mystic
I think Rabiot would be possible for sure, like you said only 1 year left of contract, and he is still not commiting to staying, he’s also been talking about joining Arsenal before. My top choice as well.
Think it comes down to who we hire as manager and what kind of draw he has, the position the club is now isn’t very attractive for established players in top clubs if we don’t show them serious ambition imo.
Bamford, let me quietly disagree. It could be said Gervinho was more influential the season we bought him, than Hazard was. But everyone (including Wenger) knew who had the higher ceiling. I am also very sure he inquired about Hazard. And I also want to think that Wenger does not thrive on self inflicted pain. He did know, however, how to cover the blushes of the club by taking whatever money he was given and running with it (as was alluded to by Friar). Maybe that was a mistake but he genuinely became a fan like us, and was in… Read more »
Your Comment Here
Allegri would be a dream.
We need someone strong like him that will wash away the remnants of a stagnant regime, and bring in or sell whoever he likes.
Even if he fails he will bring us back to neutral and allow a younger manager to come in without having any pressure to continue what Wenger claims he has built up, and start from a cleaner slate.
We’ve been heavily linked with Zielinski of Napoli the last couple of days, release clause of 53 mil. Any takers?
There’s a couple of Napoli players I’d want before coming to him, Koulibaly and Jorginho in particular.
Can someone jog my memory as to what happened at the end of last season,in which Wenger gave another one of his I can’t tell you now moment,but maybe in the future comment.
Was it about his will he, won’t he sign pantomime.
Champagne Well, it’s sort of a head-scratcher, but so are/were many of Wenger’s ideas. However, it’s also not quite as “bizarre” as some imagine, though it was completely wrongheaded. Wenger was a little like a man who has lived in a particular neighborhood for a long time at a point when some nouveau-riches families move in across the street and next door. Disgusted by them and their ostenstatiousness, he decides to define himself in opposition to them; where they buy expensive, new Mercedes Benzes, he buys pre-owned ones. The more others, including his own wife, criticize him for his approach,… Read more »
Only issue with Allegri is that he is currently fielding possibily the most boring central midfield in top level european football with Khedira and Matuidi. Two truly horrific footballers. Some Juve fans are incredibly annoyed Allegri keeps picking Khedira over Bentancur.
Just hope he casts his eye on somewhat more ambitious central midfielders if he joins us, even if those two are very solid as a pair.
Banford I hope you realise you’re filling in a hell of a lot of blanks with imaging such as that. That’s all I’ll say, it’s very easy to believe a certain thing about someone without all the facts and then join dots how you see fit according to this predetermined image. That’s always been my criticism. A lot of the mutterings about Wenger have come as a byproduct of this exact thinking. And before anyone gets tetchy about me “defending” him or being an “AKB”, I’m all for measured and valid criticism – it’s the superlative stuff I shy away… Read more »
There is suggestion of formal meetings in place with Allegri and Vieira next week. Speculation about contingencies etc, but some suggesting (hopefully I’d imagine) that Vieira could be pitched as Allegris number 2.
Now wouldn’t that just shift the landscape…
Looks like Allegri is our first choice. If for some reason we fail to get him, Arteta is the back up option. We need to make an announcement real quick. Wenger will go to France for a week post the last game of the season and that’s when we probably will make the announcement.
CC
Forget shifting landscapes. It would be like that film 2012 if Allegri came in with Vieira as his number two.
Can we stop talking about Allegri – I don’t want to get my hopes up too high!
“There is suggestion of formal meetings in place with Allegri and Vieira next week. Speculation about contingencies etc, but some suggesting (hopefully I’d imagine) that Vieira could be pitched as Allegris number 2.”
If that wouldn’t unite the divided fanbase I don’t what will.
Marc
Pardew is still in the running also.
Better? 😉
I’m just seeing the headline now.
Allegri and Vieira for management duo……………….at Juventus!
Followed by ‘Arsenal appoint Rodgers as new manager’ !
A surprisingly good read about Arteta as manager from the Metro. I’ve said it previously, but Arteta has a superb football CV and if we go that way it’d still be a very exciting appointment..
http://metro.co.uk/2018/05/12/arsenal-can-expect-mikel-arteta-succeeds-arsene-wenger-7540262/
Chris
That’s just beyond cruel….
Ornstein : Arsenal not close to appointing new manager. No agreement yet on chosen candidate, negotiations at relatively early stage, thorough process ongoing, next week looks unrealistic. Once decided, IG/RS/SM will present recommendation to #AFC board. Arteta among names being considered
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jUBQhZ3_BQ
Video on Nagelsmann
“A surprisingly good read about Arteta as manager from the Metro. I’ve said it previously, but Arteta has a superb football CV and if we go that way it’d still be a very exciting appointment..”
___
Arteta “exciting appointment” lololol.
He’s probably the least exciting of all the possible candidates.
Allegri PV04 link up would definitely be like xmas come early.
Dare we.
No fucking way Arteta is qualified for the arsenal job. May b Pep never turned up at work and Arteta has been running the show….but someone better leaks it so we do!
Never impressed with the slimy lawyer and he better not find a nobody coach/manager to heal the trauma inflicted upon by Wenger.
Coach15
He never explained what that was about. Remember that he also made a point about some major event that happened the previous December, and that he would one day tell everyone about it.
Maybe if he writes a memoir then it will be revealed, but he certainly didn’t return to the media to tell that story. Hopefully he’s kept a journal during his time managing (though I doubt it seeing as he spends all his free time watching tape), as the best memoirs are always based on notes taken at the time of the events.
“A surprisingly good read about Arteta as manager from the Metro. I’ve said it previously, but Arteta has a superb football CV and if we go that way it’d still be a very exciting appointment..” You meant as a player, right? Even that’s debatable, but as a manager?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-5721071/Chelsea-midfielder-Bakayoko-reveals-disappointed-Conte-leaves.html
Andreas Christensen worth a cheeky bid? Kante? Better late than never! He can’t be the only one feeling unsettled, surely!
Unless Chelsea get to Allegri first… 🙁
Elmo
Thanks. Yes that was it,the mysterious event in December,that he alluded to,but wouldn’t comment on.
It was bizarre considering it was linked to whether his contract situation had affected team performance.
I would be interested in finding out what that was if he ever wrote a book
Mystic a man who is a serious fan and who bleeds for the club would know that it’s fans are it’s life blood and that repeatedly lying to them and treating them is not right As well if he was genuinely concerned about arsenal he’d have been bothered by his relentless and predictable failures and been proactive in seeking solutions. He wasn’t. He would’ve stayed for life if he’d not been forced out, entirely regardless of how low he dragged us. No serious arsenal fan would turn their nose up at opportunities for progress and be comfortable about destroying our… Read more »
Arteta may well be a fantastic manager. We’re yet to find out.
But he had a super football CV?
His playing career consisted of playing for average teams before becoming one of the least memorable captains of a top club in the last 20 years in his time with us. He made zero impact on the national football scene as well though granted Spain was unbelievably overloaded in midfield.
I’m not saying he won’t be a good manager as I really am not sure – but his football CV isn’t impressive at all imo
Vieira on the other hand had a superb CV. His CV absolutely craps on Arteta from up high.
Not that that means he’s a brilliant manager but still
CC
“Pardew is still in the running also.
Better? ”
Not even close to funny!
Dissenter I have not missed the point. Arsenal’s situation was very clear in January. They had the choice of losing both Sanchez and Ozil on a Bosman this summer. The board and management team took the best option available to them which was to exchange Mkhirtaryan for Sanchez and pay what Ozil’s agent was demanding. One suspects also the arrival of Mkhitaryan also clinched the deal for Aubameyang since both had played well together at BD. Frankly it would be in a massive mess this summer losing two players for zilch who were worth potentially £100 million + What the… Read more »
Emirates
You’ve also got to take into account the other players whose contracts either expire this summer or are down to 1 year on their contracts.
In my opinion the club (not Wenger) made the best situation they could. We couldn’t lose Sanchez in Jan, then Ozil, Jack and Ramsey plus Welbeck (down to 1 year this summer) in one hit.
The club are cleaning house with several of the players whose contracts expired next summer already moved on.
Primorac, Banfield, Colbert and Peyton out even before the appointment of a new manager – only a former Arsenal player would know about our staff members and their strengths/weaknesses ?
“But he had a super football CV?His playing career consisted of playing for average teams before becoming one of the least memorable captains of a top club in the last 20 years in his time with us.” Was a youth product of Barcelona where he spent 5 years, played at PSG, then Rangers, Everton, and Arsenal. Also represented Spain at every youth level despite not earning a cap or the full side. Arteta has been witness to numerous huge players, at big clubs. He’s played for top class managers, been at clubs that demanded total success, and performed at the… Read more »
” If he was a real arsenal fan and was dragging us down he’d have been having sleepless nights for years. Not the relaxed guy making smug quips in press conferences” What I said, China, was two fold actually. of course he was having sleepless nights. I believe that’s why he kept on asking for/taking new deals to ‘rectify’ us. He was a fan for sure and truly cared. He understood the Emirates move years, the lean years and the sustainability model (and got paid good money for it too). Conte for instance don’t care about Chelsea so he’s more… Read more »
TR7
Or maybe Sanllehi really fucking good at what he does and has observed the issues and dealt with a problem.
Mystic
Totally agree with that. Was always against the bogus narrative of Wenger “walking away”.
He cares and, unlike anyone here, he can literally affect Arsenal so felt compelled to do his best to rectify matters. No fan would willingly walk away from Arsenal if they could influence our potential successes – least of all a head strong character like Wenger.
Tr7
Or Gazidis and Co. are close enough to things that they know who is/isn’t pulling their weight.
They’ve drained the mediocre swamp and that suits both causes. Either Allegri will bring his guys in, or Gazidis will hire the very best available to make the head coach role more palatable to an Arteta.
Whatever way it’s cut Arsenal benefit. New voices, methods, direction. Players will respond to that already, even if Wenger was staying.
Paulinho
Allegri always plays with Pjanic except he’s injured or been tested and he’s a boss. Maybe when he plays with a 3 Matuidi and Khedira gets to play. And Bentacur is more like Pjanic, both can’t play in the same team.
PS: I thought you liked off the ball MFs Khedira is a good one. And a long striding MF too.
Marc and CC
Yeah, that’s a plausible explanation as well.
Amazing…
Le Fraude is finally out, but still you can think that we are on Untold…
Thanks to vicuntious, mystic, auberjune, champagne and Co, with you guys the love for wenger will sill alive.
Disgusting.
Aside from Arteta being understudy to Pep what has Arteta done to get the Arsenal job which is a huge job in terms of the size of the club and the size of the job aka rebuilding.
People can say we brought in a nobody in Wenger but Wenger had management experience Arteta has none.
London
I don’t see many on here saying Arteta is their preferred candidate. You’ve only got to see the reaction to the Allegri comments earlier to see that.
Marc
I’ve seen it all over the blog.
Not to say Arteta would be a failure, but imo the logical approach is to bring in a seasoned experienced winner as this is a club and a squad in crisis.
I think once we stabilise and get a well.drilled functioning team we can then experiment with a new manager.
London
Arteta whilst apparently very highly rated would be an enormous risk, if it came off Gazidis is a hero but that’d be a pretty amazing turn of events. If it didn’t it’d cost Gazidis his job – it seems to me even if Allegri isn’t available there are other candidates to are a safer bet, I’d say Vieira’s much the same as Arteta.
I would look at Arteta only if we failed to get anyone out of Allegri, Jardim and Sarri.
It’s ok finding yourself in a problem and not know how to fix it but the way Wenger has acted is like a drowning man. All assistance available to him but he fights them off one by one until he drowns drowning others in the process. No introspection on his part to see where he might be going wrong just repeat the same methods expecting a different result despite others proving him wrong. I’m sure Stalin loved Russia, Saddam loved Iraq, Mugabe loved Zimbabwe. Notice the pattern? Those who hoard power with the grip of a dictator end up the… Read more »
Ozil Misses giroud. his floated little crosses have no one to go to now. Next manager must improve Ozil within one season or he’s got to go IMO.
gazzap
Which should go Ozil or the new manager?
Gunner2301
I’ve been accused over the last few days of being a AKB – that’s not the case I just don’t see the point in constantly rehashing what’s been said on here for years and years.
Let’s all look forward with hopefully a manager who we can all get behind and takes us back where we belong.
Marc. TBH If I was manager I’d sell Ozil this summer and get Mahrez but I dont see that happening. But Ozil has to improve or go. didn’t surprise me when we was missing we won 5-0.