The title of this headline is exactly what is wrong at Arsenal FC. Nothing sums up the imbalance of power or the lack of leadership and vision quite like the flow of people telling you that this ‘Mini Arsene’ term is bandied around in the unkindest of ways.
Arsene Wenger was a monster of a leader for the first 14 years of his tenure. He controlled the club with an iron fist because he had deep battle scars and a tremendous body of victories under his belt. When David Dein left the club, he took control because he could, and the club wanted him to.
That was a dangerous model to embrace regardless of his talents. The power of ‘one man’ control is only good for as long as the talent is fresh. If the person has a decline in ideas or starts to lose the curiosity that drove them to success, your system fails, and usually… dictators surround themselves with sycophants, so you end up being the emperor with no clothes on, with no one to tell you your saggy backside in the kitchen is unacceptable.
Usually, good businesses learn and put systems in place to avoid history repeating. Lots of businesses don’t have succession plans, then a CEO dies, and all hell breaks loose. That mistake happens once. I suspect Steve Jobs death inspired a whole industry of consultants to help mega-corps with that issue. Countries elect flamboyant charismatic leaders who promise the world, then fail to deliver, so the next few times they opt for something far more boring and bureaucratic. Wall Street had a moment after Adam Neuman convinced the world his office rental firm was not a technology company worth £49b. Big tech stocks tanked, it was harder to raise capital, and the books were scrutinized for real numbers. There are always lessons to be learned… unless you are Arsenal FC.
No club makes more consistent mistakes in leadership than Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta is a persuasive man and transactional in the extreme. He is the Donald Trump of football management. That doesn’t mean he isn’t talented on the coaching field, despite what we’ve seen this season, most will tell you his ideas are compelling. The club knew Arteta was a pain when he was at Arsenal the first time around, he was aggressive and fought hard for his teammates and himself. I was very pointedly told at the time he was ‘a bit of a shit’ when he was a player, and there was a worry his nasty side would carry through.
Now, the player and the coach can be different. People can change and often do. Arsene Wenger in his book admits his authoritarian stage at Monaco softened in Japan as he learned to deal with different cultures. However, what you do with young leaders in big jobs is you surround them with an infrastructure that softens their sharp weaknesses.
There are some really simple things you can do in football and any business to make that transition easier and ensure the club always has control.
- Limit power to the specifics of the job. Arteta was hired as a coach, he should have remained a coach. ‘Manager’ should never have been put on the table. My last boss was obsessed with balancing the power of departments in our agency because if the power dynamic is off, bad decisions are made, morale is shaken, and the work suffers. It’s a simple notion, ‘do what you are good at/paid to do’ but we have all worked in businesses where others encroach on territory that is not theirs because it’s nice to have power. Just look at Don Raul thinking he knew better than Sven Mislintat. The better talent left, we are left with the wreckage of that departmental power imbalance.
- Create a simple hierarchy that empowers experienced leaders to manage, coach, and overrule if necessary. If you go for a young tyrant, you absolutely have to have an experienced Technical Director ruling over them. I tell this story every time: after Nagelsmann lost the Champions League semi with Leipzig, he jokingly complained he wanted an older profile of player, but ‘Ralph says no.’ The best young manager in the world was about 30 years old, to succeed, he needed a wiser head to tell him no and to work within the structure he had been given. Now that manager is at Bayern. Do you think he’d be at Bayern if he’d taken the job at Arsenal? No chance.
- Limit the hires and control the important ones to avoid echo chambers and fiefdom building. Someone tweeted a picture of about 62 (exaggeration) coaches coming out of the tunnel yesterday. A striking image. 62 people watched Arteta put Kolasinac into central defence and no one suggested an intervention. No one questioned a rejected players mental state, no one questioned his commitment, no one spoke about the implications for the fans, they just let it happen. The equivalent of seeing a plane engine on fire and assuming someone else will flag it. Young managers don’t know what’s best. Arsenal should have controlled who Arteta was allowed to hire and they should have brought in someone who had a reputation that wasn’t dependent on Arteta himself. What have we got now? A mix of journeymen and kids who are dependent. That’s how you get to sycophancy and a one voice top down culture. That’s not good in football or any business.
- Do as Netflix does. Build-in feedback loops. The basic premise of always-on feedback is that you create a culture of honesty. The quicker the feedback comes into you, the quicker you can rectify erroneous behavior. Has anyone sat down with Arteta and told him how his behaviour impacts players, staff, and fans? No one is born a good leader. You learn through experience. Hearing harsh truths is painful, but it allows you to grow. Does it look like Arteta is growing into the role, or regressing into something different?
If people are leaking against you and calling you a Mini-Arsene, it means you have too much power, with too little credit to back that power.
What does all of this tell you?
There’s no leadership at Arsenal. There are no consequences for failure, incoherrance, or wastage.
It is 100% clear that Vinai has no feel for the football side of things, no understanding when it comes to staff morale at Arsenal, and no guts for making tough decisions.
Let’s look at some of the decisions that have been made over the last two years.
Vinai fired 50 staff at Arsenal, pleading poverty. Then signed Willian for £250k a week. Then held back a few weeks until the story died down, then he sacked the club mascot. The story was so bad, Mesut Ozil ran with it to bury the club even harder.
Let’s talk about Willian. Vinai was at the club when we dished out a £350k a week contract for Mesut Ozil. He saw the decline in performance, he saw the fan angst over the deal, he saw the bottom line cost. Just as we were moving him out the door, what did he sign off on? Willian on £250k a week for 3 years. He did this deal with an agent that was toxicly involved in club affairs, had already started loading us up with shite players, and had ties to an exec we had moved on. In fact, I think the contract announcement was photographed at the house of the said agent.
He was also at the table when Arsene was fussing over the wattage of bulbs in the Arsenal canteen. He saw what an all-powerful coach could do to a club. So after it looked like he’d made a sharp decision with Arteta, what did he do? Let a 37-year-old launch a land grab for a promotion. He made Arteta the manager, then demoted Edu, and worse… he made Edu sit on his lawn and tell the world he was happy to be demoted.
What makes this even worse? He was basically co-CEO with Raul who ran the club so badly, he was fired 5 weeks into an audit by Tim Lewis. Vinai literally experienced the nightmare that is co-leadership, yet he bestowed it on the two most important people on the football side of things, after years of average structure.
Then we roll into this summer after our worst season in living memory… and what changed?
Nothing.
Arteta kept his coaching staff largely intact, despite big problems in the keeping department. He kept Edu in his job, despite overseeing a vast amount of wastage in the system. He didn’t change a single thing. We are in ‘let’s have another go’ territory.
Name a CEO at a major club that would operate that way? That is rudderless leadership.
Then let’s move onto the Technical Director. If I were him, I’d smell blood in the water with Arteta, I’d be in the press setting expectations, I’d be talking up the player recruitment vision, I’d be trying to connect with the fans.
What is he doing?
He’s spent the summer sharing his vacations like he’s a 22-year-old on a trust fund gap year.
People call this line of attack petty, but I guarantee you that those views never come from people that work in serious jobs where optics are important. When you ‘lead’ a department, how you are perceived with your customers is of the highest importance, especially in an industry where your customers are very emotional. Vacation snaps are for private, it’s bad judgement to be having fun when your club is burning. If you are going on a yacht trip, do not share pictures of the agent that lumped the club with Willian and Soares in the picture, and for god’s sake, do not share with the world that you are still in contact with a grim ex-exec that was sacked for grim things. BBQ post-Brentford? I mean, come on. This is the level of acumen we are dealing with, but my question, once again, is where is Vinai in all of this?
When I worked for an American agency, one of my pals I worked with slandered a jewellery brand at 9pm London time. The New York CEO shot her a text almost instantly and told her the jewellry brand was a client, to take it down, and to never do something so stupid again. You shouldn’t have to be told at Edu’s level, but the fact Vinai has no control over it tells a story.
Then you move onto Mikel Arteta. The concept of a young manager was an interesting one, but now, I have to accept, one that has failed miserably on many levels. The problem now is the metaphorical fuse has been lit, his rep with the fans is dead because of his arrogance, and let’s be real… the way he treats people has left a bitter taste in the mouth.
… but it didn’t need to be that way and good leadership could have averted the disaster unfolding now.
Just look at the behaviours that have been allowed to pass. The Brentford press conference was a disgrace and it set the tone for a dismal game. Win that, we’re 4 points off the top of the league after playing the two best teams. He sunk that game with his attitude.
Look at what happened at Manchester City. He rolled out a Kia right back who dropped a 40% pass completion rate and contribute almost nothing defensively a week after we saw him drop a stinker against Chelsea. He was allowed to galaxy brain the central defence with a player he has absolutely humiliated with average loan spells and a summer of ‘we would like you to do one’ talks over deal termination.
You earn the right to galaxy brain. He has not earned the right to do things like that. Where was his team? Where was the Technical Director? Where is Vinai now?
Mikel Arteta doesn’t have a feel for the fans and he doesn’t have a feel for people in general. But that’s ok, lots of talented people have weaknesses. But who is there to help him? Steve Round? Clearly not. If you or I were at the club we could explain to him how his decisions affect the fanbase.
If you are going to bomb Saliba off on loan without looking at him again, you have to be sure that Pablo Mari, a man who couldn’t get a deal in Europe before Brazil, is at the right level.
If we are going to lose the City game, you absolutely have to put a likeable team out there, because Soares is going to make distrust you even more. Kolasinac is a direct hit to your non-negotiables. Xhaka pining a midfield on his own despite the fans watching him struggle with speed for 5 years is going to be a problem.
No one is there to stop a tyrant from behaving like a brat, so he keeps on doing the same thing.
There is no more than 10 games to save this disaster of a season and if he gets the sack, it is more than deserved. But what I cannot emphasize enough is the silver bullet we are looking for does not exist in a system this broken. Great managers need controls, why do you think Conte never lasts more than 3 years? He tries to make a play for the steering wheel and he’s told no. BIg clubs need vision, structure, and someone who can make the big calls. Technical Directors need a level of maturity we lack, and if they have no power, why do you have one at all?
Big changes needs to happen. There needs to be consequences for the start to season we’ve had and how last season rolled out. But it can’t be token, it needs to be a change that has a strategic lens over it. What we have doesn’t work. What we have won’t work for anyone. If Wenger, Emery, Sven and Arteta can’t survive this system… no one can.
Before I leave, I want to point to some positives. We’re not in a relegation fight this season. We have not signed 6 bums this window. When our best players come back after the break, there will be a big improvement in the football. We’ll get a right back, we’ll move on a bunch of players, and the spine of our team will repair. This squad is not a bag of mess, the right coach will take it to higher levels, the strategy of this summer might look odd now, but it was mostly done properly. You might read this line and say ‘but you just hammered the club’… yes, I did, a functional club goes so much deeper than the squad… 5 wins on the bounce won’t change the truth. Nor would 10. The club lacks leadership and until that’s fixed, we’ll always be searching for the silver bullet that doesn’t exist, and we’ll always feel like there’s no stability.
Tune in for our podcast and check out the video that went with it.
Words
Like I said under any structure at any club arteta would be sacked
Serge
Hope your right comes back has 2 years left
Get him to sign once the BB gone ..
Him white n gabs at the back with the bubble lad…
Champagne Charlie and Sal
Looks like we’re all leaning in the same direction. Ideally we would see KSE sell the club and the (hopefully competent) new owner would bring in an entirely fresh management structure that would replace Vinai, Edu and Arteta.
I wish I could see Vinai being booted by the Kroenkes but I just can’t. He’s too ingrained on the commercial side. He’s just so spineless that he shouldn’t be anywhere near a footballing decision.
Diss, naive is thinking an under-performer would have a say in who gets put above them… or think they’d have the clout to sabotage. An experienced TD would lick their lips at the AFC job.
Receding you need to get it through your skull that nobody is invested in Arteta the same way you were (still are) with Emery. He’s nobody’s crush I’m afraid to report.
But top class input as ever, in to make snide remarks and now out for the evening feeling accomplished. Way to go you.
Man ain’t humble enough to be manager
Pedro I don’t accept any of the circumstances as being mitigating. Nothing forced him to play Kola at centre back and nothing forced him to play Cedric who he signed at right back. Just simple examples of the utter incompetence of the man. Don’t forget we are not talking about three games. We are talking about last season as well and the three games ate not only a continuation but a regression of last season. Villareal was a sacking point and now we are at a point where Villarreal comes back into light again The man should be sacked with… Read more »
If we want to save our season then we don’t need to wait any longer to see whether Arteta could be a good manager for the club.
Pedro, People who needs their job for financial reason do as they are told. Some don’t. Arteta is not scrapping for cash. He is deluded enough to think that it’s not his fault. Things and people are conspiring against him. HE WILL ATTEMPT TO UNDERMINE THE NEW DOF after his demotion. He will not go quietly and meekly. He will try to worm his way back into the good favour of Kroenke Snr. He will up the ante and leak like never before. I have seen that happen. A guy was given a temporary promotion after the boss had a… Read more »
Dissenter Arteta is under major scrutiny in his role right now, the fact you think he kicks up a fuss following a hire above him is quite something. He’s on course for a sacking as is, so lashing out at a new hire will end one way, and one way only. Hint: not with any sabotage on his part. BiG Yea, concur with that. Biggest shot in the arm for me as a fan would be waking up to news KSE are selling up. That introduces such a sea-change at the relevant levels that it would truly invigorate everyone associated.… Read more »
Man ain’t humble enough to be manager
Serge..
Were cooked with this man .
Charlie Although, I agree with the two main issues you raised in reforming Arsenal I disagree they can be tackled separately. They ought to be tackled in tandem as one rubs off on the other. Replacing Arteta might be akin to bandaging a bullet wound. I accept that. But that stems the flow of blood till we get to the theatre. The summer is when the operation takes place. With Arteta the season is a write-off. Perhaps, this is were we differ. I see nothing good in Arteta in the medium to long term. He might get one or two… Read more »
Put the fear of god or loosing job into Arteta and he’ll call up Willy Saliba saying he’s just dontated to his ultra club.
That’s the reality.
There may be no need to replace the hierarchy.
Not when there is still hope that Arteta can turn this around.
Some very confused narrative taking place.
Pedro
You’re missing the point
Arteta has earned multimillion salaries since he was in his early twenties
He’s won an FA cup in his brief managerial career.
He will still get at least one job after Arsenal.
What makes you think he’s going to give a rat’s behind about hanging on by being quiet after he’s being demoted,
Edu is in the same boat too, these guys are financially secure so those overly simplistic generalizations don’t apply.
“Receding you need to get it through your skull that nobody is invested in Arteta the same way you were (still are) with Emery.”
Why should I still be invested in the Villareal manager? Make your comeback make sense?
Why are you hell bent on having Arteta in a job at Arsenal at whatever capacity? Why should failure he constantly excused and more chances afforded, he has been here 20 months and the team has no identity, what are you so desperate to preserve?
Valentin
That’s a good point you made about the lack of courage from management being as bad as their imcompetency.
Radio No I totally get the merit in bringing in a manager that immediately delivers an uptick on the pitch, I just question the likelihood of that happening currently. More likely to hire someone else, suffer through the season and calling it a write-off regardless, realise they probably aren’t the right fit after you’ve drafted in a new DoF with more refined ideas, then it’s money and resources overhauling the freshly assembled unit. At best I think a new manager now is a roll of the dice for our guys in charge. I’m warmer and warmer to Brenda personally, but… Read more »
Receding
Try reading the thoughts of people posting for a change, everyone else present has managed to do so and understand what’s been said and why.
Only you have read anything in the last hour that states Arteta must continue no matter what. Your agenda is beyond boring.
Raptora I didn’t say I supported any particular solution or thought they were all good ones. All i was saying is that the way Arsenal is – those were the 3 realistic options. What appears to have gone miles over your head as usual is my main point; ARSENAL HAVE NEVER HAD AND WILL NEVER HAVE A STRUCTURE THAT WILL BE SUCCESSFUL UNLESS THERE IS ONE PERSON GIVEN THE KEYS. ANY OTHER SOLUTIONS THAT INVOLVE COMPLEX STRUCTURE WILL FAIL. They have half -given the keys to Arteta. He is doing a TERRIBLE job with them – but he is saddled… Read more »
Richard Garlick is an interesting character. He seems to have kept a low profile and is rarely in the conversation when it comes to Arsenal’s problems.
Primarily involved in contract negotiations, it will be interesting to see what happens with him when the inevitable fallout happens.
These conversations just highlights why Pedro writes these long treatises about the management structure anytime Arteta wets the bed.
Are they relevant, ….yes of course’
They do also seem to serve as aluminum strip countermeasure to deflect the radar from the real target.
The narrative being peddled tonight is Arteta is being distracted by the lack of structure at the club, the poor man is doing too much hence he cannot setup a decent squad to play like professionals on match day, once you bring in a TD to give the club structure, he will be relieved and we will see our team playing with an identity and competing for top four. And you call this contributing something meaningful to the conversation. All you are doing is buying time, hoping he turns it around so you can call all those calling for his… Read more »
Charlie
That decision has to be a Vinai and Edu free zone.
They outsource scouting players they should also outsource Artetat’s (temporary) replacement too.
Watching match of the day, I’ve just seen Norwich have a goal disallowed for a player standing in front of the keeper but not touching him, whereas the goal scored against Arsenal for Brentford was allowed despite a Brentford player standing in front of Leno and clearly holding him… Watching match of the day i have just seen Paul Pogba mis control a ball and clearly go over the top of a wolves player with a reckless and out of control challenge, leading to united goal that was allowed to stand as VAR saw nothing wrong with the challenge .… Read more »
Receding
Pretty clear the entire discussion is completely based on the smartest way to replace Arteta. No agenda a simple discussion on best course of action.
Its clear to all Arteta is done.
I’m looking at this old video of Arteta as a player in a totally different light. Yes, he might bejoking around but when you’ve just won the F.A Cup, it’s interesting to see where his mind went.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/row-zed/arsenal-players-boo-ivan-gazidis-5801227
“Try reading the thoughts of people posting for a change,” Try reading some of the stuff you come up with twice before you hit post comment, I assure you 80% of the time you won’t post them. My agenda is for us to rescue a season, We have written off Two seasons for Arteta already, both times he finished eight. Pirlo was sacked for less and he is a bigger club legend at Juve than Arteta ever was here. Ditto Lampard Arsenal football Club don’t owe Arteta anything. We can sack both him and Edu, if Vinai as a CEO… Read more »
Sal
“Its clear to all Arteta is done.”
Nearly everyone but not quite.
“Its clear to all Arteta is done.”
Speak for yourself Sal, some are still waiting for “win four games and we are in the conversation for top four”
Pedro, You are just deflection because as Receding wrote you are just hoping that Arteta will come good and prove you right. Deep down you already know, that’s not going to happen. Arteta is nothing like you think he would be. For somebody who work in marketing, you seem to easily fall for con artists and smooth talkers. Gazidis first, then Arteta. To resolve the situation is not complex: 1) Sack Arteta and his closest coaching staff including Steve Round and the Goalkeeper coach 2) Name a headcoach replacement and his staff. It could just be a caretaker manager until… Read more »
Receding
Take the night off trying to offer some shit insight into my views and let them be read for what they are for a change. About the 5/6th time you’ve decided to chime in with a snide remark and make out like you have answers nobody else does, about my views no less. Quite something.
Everyone else is managing just fine with what I’m saying whether they’re in agreement or not.
Pedro
There’s obviously the option of a clean break where they clear out Edu and Arteta at the same time. Think Overmars/Ten Hag or something similar (not saying that couple is the right solution)..
Any competent DoF would have managers they would hire immediately if available. No need to extend the misery. Both Edu and Arteta can be taken out at the same time.
Receding is just making that observation that some people are seem to be invested in giving. Arteta every opportunity while they throw his compatriots under the bus.
The manager is responsible for what happens on the field on match days.
He can’t even use the excuse of being a head coach; ‘I have minimal operational control”
The set up is for Edu and Vinai to give Arteta what he wants
Sack them both of they didn’t give him what he wanted, otherwise the manger gets the chop first.
Worst-case would be to fire Edu and Arteta. Hire a competent DoF and install Mertesacker as caretaker manager for a few games while details are being ironed out.
Sorry, I meant worst-case if you can’t find an immediate manager to replace Arteta. Obviously, getting rid of both of them together is a best-case scenario.
Arteta couldn’t manage to smash anything at a Greek wedding let alone 5 games of footie
I’m with Johnny Cochran on this one. We’ve seen enough of Arteta. He has to go now. We know Edu is imcompetent. Both of them should be sacked the moment the window closes.
CC I couldn’t care less about your views, you can keep spouting them. You are just irritated cos I see what you are doing for what it really is, buying time waiting for that little run of form so you can get back on your “I love the way he sees the game” crush
Its very transparent
I am Johnny
Says it like I would tell Pedro if I had the chance.
bacary,
If Garlick was any good he’d be assiduously reviewing Arteta’s contract at this very moment!
Managers aren’t sacked based on one or two games,they are sacked when their body of work doesn’t meet the standards set. I remember Sarri was asked if he would be sacked if he loses the next two games and he said if that’s the case sack me now. You are either on board with what Arteta has delivered since his time here or you are not, no one is panicking because we started the season poorly, we are concerned because it’s been twenty months and we don’t know what sought of team he is building. I don’t see what the… Read more »
Receding,
“So you are either okay with his work and want him to continue, or you have seen it is not up to scratch and he is gone. Who the TD is doesn’t have any bearing in this conversation.”
Amen.
Words
Who knows whether Garlick might prove to be a dark horse. He’s clearly a political operator, having been Director of Football for the Premier League. I’m sure he’ll try to fill any power vacuum that might open up.
Receding You’re the epitome of what occurs when you’re unable to remove bias, you see and read whatever you like or twist it to suit your own narrative. My views are clear on how I think we get better, again, several posters understood the how/why but you’ve turned up with your own tinfoil tirade you’re now peddling as the truth. ‘Transparent’ is the euphemism here for your own delusions of grandeur. If you “couldn’t care less” about my views you’d scroll past and make conversation with the numerous others that have been happily chewing the fat on here the past… Read more »
Garlick knows how to work the press. Look at this headline below from the Athletic:
‘Richard Garlick: The lawyer with ‘charm and grace’ who could be key to Arsenal’s summer rebuild’
bacary,
hmm, a lawyer with “charm and grace”?
Maybe just the political apparatchik/structural engineer type needed to engineer Arteta’s departure AND to fill the Arteta-shaped hole in Arsenal’s structure that Pedro and Champagne Charlie are so worried about.
Words
Yeah, I wouldn’t be at all be surprised if his star rises at the club just as Edu and Arteta’s come crashing down.
Valentin
I totally forgot about Partey breaking Covid rules. We really are short on options!!! Here’s hoping Ben White starts to live up to his transfer fee. He would be the most logical choice.for 2022-2023 if he shines this season.
Richard Garlick .. Our man in Havana.
Solid read Josh must be nearly they it.
– thru
Haha Sal-great movie too.
Anyone been fired yet?
Bla bla bla. Here pete let me help you out.
Pedro – “Hey lads, Arteta was a mistake. I was wrong. Let’s move on.”
Lads – “No worries pete. We’re only human. We all make mistakes”
Done.
Just be humble and cool dude.
Insane betting odds for Arteta to be next manager to leave right now.
Arteta 4/9
Vieira 7/1
Munoz 8/1
Bruce 10/1
Hasenhuttl 12/1
Lage 12/1
Farke 14/1
I think a good bet would be on Farke particularly if Arsenal beat them comfortably. Norwich might be bad enough to get relegated in record-breaking speed.
I still think Arteta goes first and Farke is popular but if Norwich are as bad as I think they are, he might even resign or reach a mutual deal to depart. Worth a punt.
Arteta’s failings with basic coaching and team management has been well litigated on LG
There’s no rational decision making that factors in him staying on
He’s woeful, not up to standard and damaging the clubs brand with every day he stays on irrespective of whether he wins the next 2-3 games or not
We have had a sufficient body of work to judge him on
Vinai and Edu can/should be replaced once adequate replacements have been identified but Arteta has to be the first on the chopping block
Sly-all that is well and good but who do you trust to pick the next manager?
It’s actually an interesting Catch-22. You need to replace the manager but you can’t trust anyone to make a good decision at the club so you remain in stasis.
Bacaryisgod
There no catch-22
A manager does not meet his target and gets sacked…new manager gets appointed..
We changes Emery and won an FA cup, the new manager losses his way and needs to go.
The change doesn’t come with a 100% certainty of success but has to be made nonetheless
The right manager may not come in until the 4th, 9th or nth change
I don’t understand why gooners are so scared of managerial changes, maybe it’s the Wenger factor.
Bacary Same question would apply to who decides on CEO/DOF replacements If KSE want to stem the bleeding of their asset they have to put structures in place to advise them accordingly with setting up administrators to run this club They own multiple sport franchises, it’s not like they haven’t done it before They took the easy and cheap routes with wenger et al but you can see that there was some effort post wenger with Raul/ mislinstat etc to try and bring structure in They went cheap and lazy again with artedu/ vinai Unless they don’t mind flushing hundreds… Read more »
There’s a long list of progressive minded ‘actual’ coaches who can turn things around with the team pretty quickly
We have the bones of a reasonable squad to perform a lot better
The question of trusting the people to appoint a new manger is not so important
The more we change managers, the better we’ll get at it. I don’t mind the managerial change carousel so long as it’s done with proper processes . People are hooked on personalities and big names.
Dissenter/Sly That’s maybe why we are so screwed as a club right now. There is not one key decision-maker to be trusted from ownership or management. You’re both missing the fundamental dilemma. Of course Arteta has to go but what chance of a good replacement do we have if Vinai or Edu are anywhere near the decision. Yes, Arteta should be sacked but I would want Edu and his cronies (Raul/Kia) to have nothing to do with the decision. Vinai can’t be trusted. The only person that might have any clue is Richard Garlick but his low profile and lower… Read more »
Dissenter Man, you lost me on that one. Is that what you really want? A bunch of incompetents throwing darts at the wall in the hope that we’ll get lucky at some point? At the board level, some have hope for Tim Lewis. He’s supposedly a lifelong fan. I don’t know what that means because there are many lieflong fans who don’t have a club about football but their daddy just had a corporate box for them and their Oxbridge friends. No class warfare intended here but I see Lewis is Oxford-educated and went to an elite public school (Charterhouse).… Read more »
https://youtu.be/gJVNTIl_hEc
Bacaryisgod The ‘bunch of incompetents’ got us a manager who got us within a point of 4th place and the EL final The “bunch of incompetents” got us a young manager who won an FA cup within his first year They aren’t as incompetent as you lot are making out There;s no certainty that any manager you appoint will endure in the level of quality expected. This is similar to the AFCON debate, people are engaging in exaggeration to avoid doing what is obviously necessary. Even the best DoF have to fire a manager they signed after great deliberations. You… Read more »
Scanning through the press this morning and it looks like we can forget Arteta being fired in this International break. Apparently, Arteta is going to introduce 2 new partners to Arsenal at the restart. Why a new manager couldn’t do that is beyond me. I don’t know about anyone else, but I don’t need to read what’s going wrong at my club from the owners down. Personally I’ve made companies too many millions to not know why we are in so much trouble. So posters are saying Pedro wants 10 more games. Same as last season. Pedro said last season,… Read more »
K’phobe/Almunia Another cracker from you Almunia. Keep them coming, life in the Arsenal world is lacking humour although many are laughing at our expense , which seems ok to Pedro and the Arteta fans. K’phobe enjoying your posts. By your attitude here and the way you write, you’d fit right in with a MC club. riding the Milwaukee Vibrator as the Harley is known by many wives and GFs of riders around the States. Chubby Checker good old rock an roll. I appreciated the fifties when I was older but the 60s woke everything up music in me. Guess I… Read more »
Tony
Arteta should be sacked but he won’t be.
End of the day, everyone knows that we have an absentee boss whose name is Stan K.
Arsenal is uninspiring.
Spuds top of the league with arsenal 20th.
If we don’t win the Norwich game, it’s safe to say arteta will be fired.
Even norwich has scored a goal now. Comical, how the club is being run
#Kroenke Out
#Free Arsenal
Dissenter I might be wrong but I don’t think I called them a ‘bunch of incompetents’. The Kroenkes are clearly good businessmen. They bought Arsenal at a cheap price, so you have to give them some credit there. They’ve had some recent success with their franchises in the U.S so I agree they aren’t total idiots. They just don’t have football knowledge. I think Josh has made some effort but it’s just not in his veins. Vinai is probably fine in many commercial aspects of the club. He’s clearly a smart guy. I just don’t believe he has the necessary… Read more »
Listening to the podcast I agree with Pedro on this…
The bitterness will still linger despite any upswing in results. Its too hard now, to lose that feeling with the fans and with Arteta.
I agree. Fan contentment and happiness is foreign to the club especially the ones running it and Arteta. A match made in heaven I guess you can say with all of them.
I don’t follow the logic that Edu is a bigger problem that tets. Edu has been poor at selling for sure, but one hand tells us how hard the market has been whilst the other holds this example up as an additional reason for dismissal. IDK, seems shaky reason. Besides, he’d pretty much be a legend if he could sell our dross. All Euro super Swiss captain Xhaka fetched fuck-all interest, how in the hell do you sell Elneny and Kola? Especially when the powers that be…mike, whomever else decides this stuff, poorly…said 15 or 12 or whatever wasn’t enough… Read more »
Haha Nice one Janky
Like how you call this imposter Mike like me…
Its Mike, just joe shmoe off the streets masquerading like hes a generational football coach. lol
Good old Mike…
Not even caps mike. Just lower-case gtfo mike. Then the healing can begin.
LOL there you go mate!
I can only hope the silence is actually Vinai having midnight meetings secretly with prospective coaches… just he did with mike.
SHHHH!
its happening folks….
All we need are 2 fold: Leadership qualities Accountability Assuming in their CVs they can demonstrate success in both as well as football or Sport in general, I don’t see how we can’t surpass or equal the Chav’s record of achievement in the next 10 or so years. They have an excellent model they make work well. Ditto Leicester on a smaller scale. Been saying for months we need a Marina Granovskaia. I’d go far as to say she could replace Vinai as CEO. Probably cost a lot, but every penny spent would be worth it. Today’s educated women have… Read more »
Janky, welcome to the evening crew. You’ll fit in perfectly with views like that.
I HAVE INFOOO!!!!
No I dont have it 🙁 Sad to see Arsenal at the bottom of the table, hoping for a club statement saying Arteta has been fired.
Worst start of the season ever.
Sagg
why not ping your friend, and inquite a bit? Get us something?
Tony
Three C’s of Rangnick
Concept
Competence
Capital/Cash
Master the first 2 and the third will come…
now at Arsenal, cough cough…ahem….
I think that Rangnick would be good.
Also, the flip side would be a high powered coach that has its own benefits
I am on record saying a coach like Conte will force Edu, KSE to operate differntly to get results.
Perhaps like a big club finally.
We take chances on non big names there is always risk as well.
Big names come with risk too, but also big reward
* inquire
Guns SF
I cant, it is not that easy.
I think at this point I wont get anything else. So it is just wait and see.
But whatever happens, we are doomed, because every decision is just a reaction, there is no plan or method just hot decisions all over the place, so we need a lot of luck to get something good. It is like the lottery.
I like Rangnick, too, as you know Guns. Have to prize him away from the Russian club.
I like my women between 70-80 kg, had to let that out of my chest, please ignore.
Sid
Most random comment ever. What the hell????
XD
Sid turn off the porno man… do you ever sleep lad?
Why Pedro keeps banning Marc and Marko?
let them back in… come on Pete.
We are all aboard the arteta out ship
Tony
For you, RIP Lee Scratch Perry…. great mind and innovator. DUB all day way man
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/lee-scratch-perry-reggae-giant-152403291.html
“You’re the epitome of what occurs when you’re unable to remove bias, you see and read whatever you like or twist it to suit your own narrative.”
Who exactly am I biased against? You or Arteta?
The man has been here twenty months and his list of mistakes can fill a small novel, so what exactly will 10 games change? Why are you finding it difficult to let go? What’s with all the structure distraction’s
Tough to visit this site and repeat the same mantra Arteta Out, Edu Out. Oh the agony of being an Arsenal supporter. We are on track to have between 2-4 points after Oct 2nd and possibly be still in the relegation zone.
ESPN posted this “there will be added joy when Spurs fans look at the table, with their team at the summit and bitter rivals Arsenal rock bottom.”
On the brighter side Arteta will be gone during the 2nd International break.
Amen to that Pedro
Don’t think we will any results from the NLD. Difficult to say regarding BHA & Burnley away.
RH
Don’t get your blood pressure up consider the source of the bias statement, it is just Confused Charlie.
Guns
Sid is a multi-tasker. He sleepsturbates.
Tony
Hiya mate. Good, very readable stuff as ever. Your prognosis (the simple one) contains an omission I think. No mention of Arteta. But knowing your views, I’m sure you also meant get rid of him as well. Liked that story about your wife – it sounds like she ran rings around those lads.
Looks like we are not trying to get a new player in, focus will mostly be on the outgoings.
We may need one of Neves or Bisoumma even for the manager who takes over from Arteta when he’s sacked. Xhaka and Lokonga is not enough especially if Partey is injured as he usually is for most part of the season.
It reminds me of Sunday league football when coming up to a tough game a number of players would be mysteriously laid low by an illness or injury, death in the family , car broke down or some other fancy excuse. Pierre Just caught up with this little nugget you posted yesterday. You do realise that you’re describing your idol Ozil to a tee don’t you. You need to face facts mate – he was our worst ever signing and his spite and petulance are major factors as to why we have such a squad of shit bags now. He… Read more »
At any other club, with over 2 years in the job and with the horrible horrible football we play, the first to go is the manager. There’s been absolutely nothing to suggest Mikel Arteta knows what he’s doing. He’s been worse than the much maligned Unai Emery. Does changing the TD at this moment in time solve the fact that our manager 2 years into the job doesn’t know his best defensive pairing even after spending a ton of money on that position. All I’ve read so far is just spin and more spin and stupid things like “the next… Read more »