Understanding Wenger
Posted by Joe Pacutho in Arsenal, Arsene Wenger | 2 October 2008
Written prior to the Arsenal - Porto Match
I believe many Arsenal faithful burnt the mid-night oil on the 1st September in vain. They must have waited with baited breath to hear the announcement of a mystery signing but were terribly disappointed.
It is not a question of funds or lack of it. Wenger has enough funds to buy any player if he so wishes. The board is always willing to give him funds to buy players. He has done so much saving over these years that the board can never deny him funds. Since Wenger took over at Arsenal, by last season he is said to have only spent £5 million by balancing sales and buying of players. Therefore this is not a manager who can be denied funds when he needs it. Then why is he so parsimonious?
I hear all the time that we have no money, but I just wish someone would take the time to look at our accounts. We do not need extra investment. This is a proper business which produces its own cash and lives or dies by its performances. If Arsène said he needed £30million for a striker, he would get it, no problem at all.- Danny Fizman
If you are a disappointed and a frustrated fan, it is only because you have not been listening or reading between the lines. You have not been alert to what is going on at the Emirates. I have therefore interlaced this article with some quotes which should make you understand Wenger and Arsenal better to help you avoid heart ache.
My take is that Wenger believes he has enough quality in this Arsenal team to win trophies. They have shown they can upset any team in Europe. The Premiership is only a different ball game. Sometimes you lose or draw because of some very dubious refereeing decisions.
"This group of players have developed into winners and I think they can develop more. They have not reached their true potential. This season they want to do more. We want to prove we are true champions by winning the league again,"- Wenger.
Wenger is a green grocer who grows his own vegetables and only takes in deliveries when his crops are not ready. But he is always buying choice seedlings for his garden. He tends them meticulously before he puts them on the market. Many of his vegetables are now ready for harvest, do you expect him to take in deliveries from other growers?
So when the clock struck 12.00, Wenger was not bothered. You have not been watching while he tinkered. The midfield problem was solved without many noticing. The biggest hole in the mid-field was the one left by the departure of Flamini. That hole has been plugged by Eboue who in the last three games showed, with time we shall not terribly miss Flamini. The other hole was the one left by Alexander Hleb. This has not only been plugged but properly sealed by the introduction of Samir Nasri. This boy is a sensation. He is a much more valuable player than Hleb. He has got pace, he can dribble and can score goals.
After running out of steam because of a thin squad as a result of injuries, Arsenal failed to lift the premiership trophy. Most fans reacted by urging Wenger to purchase new players. His priorities were and are still different despite losing to Fulham after a lackadaisical performance.
"The challenge we face is to keep them together," Wenger admits. "It is very important to meet their needs inside the club, the way we play, the way we behave, with success on the field and in financial rewards. If you can achieve that as a club you can keep them together. I don't feel at our club you have to make any other sacrifice than financial, because all the other aspects are better at our club than anywhere else."
He was unable to keep them together. He lost Flamini and Hleb and almost lost Emmanuel Adebayor. As he could not keep them together, he needed to buy players to replace them (if necessary). So he bought Aaron Ramsey(17), Samir Nasri(21) and Amoury Bischoff. Looking at their ages, you should recall the statement about ‘not buying stars, but making them’.
For Wenger to purchase anybody, most importantly, he must have quality. By this, I understand it to mean, he must posses talent and skill. He must also be fairly an efficient player. This means, that he must have an advantage over the opponent in a ‘one on one’ situation. The other thing is ofcourse the price must be right. Do you remember this statement?
"The fact you don't have too much to splash out makes you think more. You have to find different solutions to balance the budget and I find that part of the job rewarding and challenging " - Wenger.
Wenger is a manager in the true sense of it. He is also managing the finances. He recognises that the loan on the stadium must be paid. So that is why he is being frugal (‘balancing the budget’). It goes without saying, the greatest asset to Arsenal are you the fans. Without your support (buying the expensive tickets) and faithfulness to the club, there would be no ‘budget to balance’. So the fans deserve to be paid back in the form of trophies.
"If you do not balance the books you go bankrupt and die. I could push the club into big debt. I go away with success and the guy who comes after me suffers for five years because he cannot buy a player any more and the club goes down. The guy who comes after me has good players he can work with, he has a healthy financial situation, and he has a club in good shape. That is part of management as well."
I am quite sure the answer to this is not, the buying of stars or ready made players. Otherwise teams like Liverpool and Tottenham should be up there vying for top honours. They have been purchasing stars and mature players every season. Most teams in the premiership have mature players but they never perform as well as the Arsenal ‘kids’, why?
I know my squad is good, my team is good, our spirit is good. We are intelligent enough to know we did not play well, but we know as well we have the needed quality to respond. We were not good last Saturday and lost. It’s as simple as that. We completely understand the criticism. It hurts terribly to lose like we did.-Wenger
May be I am too understanding or outright stupid, but apart from the Carling cup (which for the Gunners is a ‘training cup’) Manchester United had not won anything for 3 years before they won the premiership. I am not therefore concluding that we shall win the premiership trophy this year. But I am dead certain that we are capable of winning it. Do not forget every day that passes the kids are becoming boys and the boys are becoming men as they continually acquire experience.
Since joining Arsenal Wenger has maintained the club among the top four. For three seasons they were number one. Five seasons at number two, two seasons at number four, and last season at numer three. This means the climb towards the top has began. The last three years has been a transition period. A period for prunning the old and fostering the young. In two years, these kids will be men.
This is a period of bonding and in two years time, the chemistry between them will be awesome. I promise you that if Wenger can keep this crop of players together no team in Europe will beat them. They will reign supreme for a long time. If you can be patient for these two years, you will be glad you did.
I am talking about two years because I am certain that the club will have paid all its debts thereby being able to effectively compete in the transfer market. The club will also be able to improve the wage-bill considerably. I am quite sure even as I write the management is aware of the need to look into the wage bill in order to avoid any exodus come next transfer window. Arsene Wenger cannot afford to lose more players. He knows keeping these players together is critical.
Two years is not along time to wait. Consider Liverpool who have not won the premiership since it was instituted 19 years ago. The fans have not deserted the club, so why should you. As a fan, you are the mainstay of the club, without you there is no club.
Do you remember the final of the carling cup between Chelsea and our reserve team? The boys played some fantastic and stylish soccer. Abramovich was not amused. The contrast is style was so huge that he decided there and then Mourinho should go.
The problem was this. At Chelsea, trophies were being won but that did not translate into money at the stadium gates. As a business man who has invested huge sums of money buying those players, their style of play was not bringing in the money. They were still the “boring, boring Chelsea”. He realised that what brings in the spectators is stylish football as played by Arsenal. Peter Kenyon infact declared that they needed to win the trophies in ‘style’. So Jose Mourinho had to go.
On the financial side, despite the winning no trophies for the last three seasons, Arsenal’s financial performance was extremely good. And that is because of the unfailing support of fans. So fellow fans sit back and enjoy sublime soccer. Back here we say Arsenal plays soccer, but the others play football. Look at it as unlimited entertainment from August to May. The trophies will start rolling in. The biggest and most difficult word is PATIENCE.
“…….the board are patient but not complacent” –Danny Fiszman
These boys are not really bad. They could have won the premiership last season. We had many players out injured, then there was the horrific injury to Eduardo. There were some very questionable decisions against the gunners. Many people are of the view that, that match with Birmingham was the turning point in our quest for the trophy. I could not agree more. There was no penalty. Clichy put his foot on the ball and this guy came and threw himself against Clichy. The result of which was an underserved draw.
"Of course I am in a position where I can spend the money. But every time we have done such a great job with the young players that you are concerned 'do we kill a young player or not by bringing another player in?' It is a very sensitive subject which is not specially linked with money" - Wenger.
Apart from the loss of Edwardo, what incensed me most was that, the accident completely overshadowed Theo Walcott’s first brace for Arsenal in the premiership. He had almost single handily won the game for the gunners. Another fall-out from the incident was that some players like Hleb stop playing. That he wanted to leave did not surprise me. He was one player who was never protected by the referees throughout his Arsenal career. Ofcourse in general. Arsenal is the most unprotected team on the field.
Wenger ir looking at the future. Two to five years away. In my view success will come within of after two years. So sit back and enjoy scintillating soccer unlimited.
"In the end that is what we all strive for. We can't win every year and hopefully it will be our turn next year and for many years to come. -Danny Fiszman
We're always on the look out for new writers. So if you fancy writing about your team, please get in touch.
Comments
Great article need i say anymore ,this team will win silverware for it is natural for the wonderful way they play.Football will always win.
I have read a lot of garbage written about Arsenal over the years and your piece is a breath of fresh air. I enjoyed reading it and hope to read many more like it from you.
Thank You.
Excellent article. One of the best I've read in a while, and I've read a lot. I appreciate the thought and time you must have put into this. You are right on about Arsene. He has a unique way of doing things, and no one does it better than he does. I think you're incorrect about being debt-free in 2 years. It will actually take much longer (think of the stadium debt as a mortgage). However, the club are doing extremely well financially (particularly considering this current financial crisis) and will continue to do so for years to come because, as you say, of the way that Arsenal play football. It will be a while before any Arsenal manager can spend like Chelsea and Real Madrid, but once the current first team have matured into their mid and late twenties, it won't matter anymore. We will have a huge pipeline of stellar young talent waiting in the wings based on the way Arsene has run things. Arsene has been the greatest blessing to Arsenal (and football in general), and anyone who has ever called for his head is so wide of the mark as to be on another planet.
great article.. ive written a similar kind of a article, not exactly on same lines, but its about the style of play and of our future...
kindly read
This is a big mistake. Winning something in two years is utterly unforecastable. I believe the youth experiment will prove one truth: it doesn't win anything. Keep on losing and the side we have won't stay together. Tragic when it is so avoidable.
I think its been ok untill now but with clubs having mega bucks wenger cant keep doing what he has done next year clubs will have money burning to buy Man U Man City Liverpool Chelski probely Newcastle and maybe more i think we will be bought as we are the most attractive investment in the world new stadium filled every game finances in control Great team and manager
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