I have just read Arsene Wenger’s blueprint on survival in the Premiership and had to be sedated, heavily. Have you ever read such deluded self-importance? We don’t need the inscrutable Arsene Wonga to teach us mere mortals the secret of his survival. We Gooners have suffered from his blue print to success for the last five years and pretty much can pull a thesis on the subject out of our arses.
When you’re deemed to be successful by the profits (not prophets) you can deduce that it’s not exactly rocket science what’s required of you to survive.
Most football clubs judge their managers on results on the pitch, not revenues off of it. The pressures on the Chris Huhgton, Harry Redknapp, Roberto Mancini and Roberto Di matteo’s is very evident. Also evident from Arsenal is that Wenger is never under pressure to deliver success because Arsenal’s benchmark for glory is linked directly to Champions League Qualification and the money it brings into our ever growing coffers! The fat are getting fatter (in their pockets).
Football managers are also judged on the players they bring in and the success they bring to the club. In my somewhat humble opinion, no other manager in world football could possibly have survived signings like Gervhimio, Squillaci, Santos, Dennilson, Park, Bendtner, Chamakh and Arshavin, who was our record signing?! These players were deemed by Wenger to make up the strongest he had had at Arsenal (his words, not mine), when even the worst judge in the world could quickly spot that they were possibly the worst collection of players to ever wear the once coveted Arsenal shirt! Am I exaggerating? I think not.
Children sat in their seats around me at the Emirates with looks of utter disbelief as these players and more have strolled around the pitch falling over, missing tackles, passing backwards and missing open goals. Of course that is to happen from time to time, but not on a team like Arsenal should be! One of the richest clubs in the world with the highest ticket prices?
Why couldn’t Wenger see what anyone else could see, then adding insult to injury by pretending that we couldn’t see it?
Even defeats to Bradford and at home to Blackburn had the stubborn, deluded multi-millionaire pointing the finger at the press rather than admitting his own short comings and the obvious failings in our depth of quality in our squad. If we can’t blame the manager for who is on the pitch at any given time, who do we blame?
So now as he struggles to offload his bunch of misfits onto other managers who are as astute as the children of the Emirates, he has taken to giving survival speeches to the world on “finding your way back to your hotel after you got lost jogging” and calling it “motivational”. It’s staggering, that.
What would be motivational for all Arsenal fans would be a small insight in to what exactly is happening at the club. What is the contingency if, as we all expect, bids for Suarez do not secure the player?
It’s been rumoured that Wenger has offered £ 40 million plus Bendtner and Gervinho, but Liverpool preferred the original offer of £40 million and a penny !
13 of the so called “strongest squad ever” have now either been loaned out or been sold. With a saving of over £ 400,ooo a week, and the Arsenal squad is now threadbare, even if it was only the deadwood we got rid of. Wenger can give speeches all he wants about player management and motivation, what about the fans? Where is our motivation to watch our best players being sold to our competitors? What is our motivation to pay the highest ticket prices in the world to suffer the ever growing mediocrity that is now Arsenal Football Club?
Where is the fans’ management, our respect, our philosophy, our ambition?
How dare you Arsene Wenger! Your arrogance and narcissism can only be eclipsed by your over-inflated salary, which is now matched by your ego! Once again in the summer transfer window you have managed to fulfill your profit-making remit.
Survival in the Premiership, by Arsene Wenger
1. Sell your best players
2. Do not sign any players from the Premiership.
3. Concentrate on your balance sheet not winning trophies.
4. Ignore your fans, the media and your assistant coach, all of whom would like answers.
5. Make sure your best players don’t earn any where near what you do, because your ego’s the only one that matters.
6. Qualify for the Champions League with no intentions of trying to win it, just get the cash-in.
Now that was the truth, remember that? I keep hoping Wenger will prove me wrong, EVERY Gooner wants that. But I’m getting an awful feeling of deja vu.
Sayanara, Arsene Wenger!
Richie Rich
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