Arsenal Fans Deserve More Than Wenger

Winning the FA Cup was the worst thing that could have happened to Arsenal fans and maybe even Arsene himself this season.

The Gunners’ day out
Why? Because the smile on Le Professeur’s face when the final whistle went at Wembley after beating a below par Chelsea confirmed to me what I think Arsene thinks of himself, that he still “has it”. You know, the winner, the boss, the guy who put out fast, attacking, exciting teams all those years ago.

But the reality, the stark reality is that he hasn’t, and I’m sure plenty of Gunners fans aren’t hoodwinked into thinking a trophy that comes after beating non and lower league sides means anything these days other than a day out and a little bit of window dressing for the in-house social media account.

Big name players couldn’t care less. I can, because it’s a trophy that defined my childhood and was always a big deal.

Who gives a f*ck?
But let’s be honest now, with so much football on TV all year round, the FA cup has blended into the kind of relevance that the Coppa Italia or Copa Del Rey used to have to a British and Irish audience. In other words, it’s been relegated to “who gives a f*ck?” when it comes to attracting the world’s biggest players to any club.

Arsenal and Arsene are at a crossroads and it feels like they have been for a while. But if proof were needed that this time it may be serious, damaging and some time before the “normal service” of Champions League qualification is resumed, then here’s a reminder.

Man City have 300 million reasons why they are confident this summer of finishing above Arsenal next time around.

Man United fans know in Jose that they have a manager who almost ALWAYS has the number of Wenger.

Chelsea, as champions, and a manager that got to grips better with the Premier League in twelve months than Wenger has in ten, won’t be overly concerned with the FA Cup winners.

The only concerns Spurs should have about the neighbours is in-house. Namely losing players and the manager. Nothing externally from Islington can seriously harm them in the next two seasons.

And Liverpool, for me, are again in a position to sell those five stars to players that currently play for clubs like Arsenal. Klopp and the board need to wring out every last drop of the LFC history channel to say to players like Sanchez, Ozil and co, “Come up here, Champions League isn’t something we’ve qualified for, it’s something we win”.

£8 million bubble
So where does this leave Arsene Wenger? In exactly the same position he’s always been in, safe in an £8 million a year bubble, surrounded by nice young boys on the pitch, no dissenting voices in his office and a board who in some cases want to act but are powerless to make changes due to the influence of the most awful of football shareholders, a Stan Kronke.

A man who couldn’t give a flying fig about the ball and the green stuff out on the open air, just the green stuff that fills his pockets and expands his property empire.

Arsenal fans deserve much better.

Unfortunately it’s getting to that time where Arsene Wenger is starting to dip into his Invincibles legacy, which if fans turned big time next season, would be a huge shame to see. Football is ruthless though and if you don’t know when to get out and you stay beyond your welcome or capability, then perhaps you deserve that just for being obstinate.

Arsene should go while the shine is still on that FA Cup and memories of a sunny Wembley day are still fresh, because as Claudio Ranieri knows all too well, you’re only as good as your last few games.

If Arsenal don’t react to what is going on around them I can’t see anything other than a sad story being told sometime next season. I really don’t want that to involve an innovator, a great guy and the best foreign import into our league. Arsene Wenger.

Hats off to Huddersfield
Congratulations to David Wagner and Huddersfield. It’ll be nice to see a club, like Boro, owned and loved by a local man who wants to see his dreams turned into a top flight reality.

The Premier League though always comes with a health warning and for Huddersfield they could do much worse than make a few calls to Steve Gibson at Boro. Maybe have a chat with Aitor Karanka and Steve Agnew and get as much good information ahead of the season which will be with us in the blink of an eye.

Goals pay the bills, goals keep teams in the league and the tale of the tape for Huddersfield during the Championship season was an incredible minus two goals. This is something you’d be more likely to see near the foot of the table, so the stats are clear and so is the warning.

Buy quality in key positions and you’ll have a chance, particularly up front, but ignore that and I’m afraid, despite a quality manager and a very robust, pacey style of play,

…the Terriers could be down and out almost as quickly as Boro were this season.

Forget yo-yoing, those West Brom days of going down and coming immediately back up seem to be going. So, think like a Premier League team and buy like a Premier League team and grasp the nettle. Don’t forget, Wigan and Blackpool were in the top flight but a blink of an eye ago. Good luck!