An Arsenal Fan of over 50 years
Watch how, over the next few weeks, Wenger will try and re-write the narrative of the season.
His version will run something like this...
'Last autumn, lots of people wrote us off. They thought we might not even finish in the top four, let alone challenge for the championship. We proved them all wrong with our quality and our mental strength. We were serious contenders for the championship until the very end of April. We lost to Barcelona in the Champions League last 16 only because Van Persie was unjustly sent off in the Nou Camp. We also reached the Carling Cup final and lost only because of a million to one aberration in stoppage time.
We've qualified for the Champions League for the 14th consecutive season - an incredible achievement, given our small transfer outlay when compared with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City.
We have continued to develop exciting young talent. Wilshere has already become a star and I'm confident Szczesny will too. That shows the strength of our youth policy and why we don't need to spend a lot in the transfer market.
And we have achieved all this despite another season of appalling bad luck with injuries. Losing Vermaelen for nearly all the season was a huge blow. We've also been unfortunate that Fabregas, Nasri, Walcott and Van Persie have rarely played in the same team because of all the knocks we've suffered.
Yet, despite these problems, we've once again achieved a considerable amount. We are still a young side which is improving and we are not far from winning a trophy next season.'
There'll be no mention of his failure to address the obvious problems in goal or at centre back, his refusal to sign cover for Vermaelen in the January window, or his arrogant failure to address defensive problems, especially at dead ball kicks.
Or that Wilshere's emergence, Szczesny's arrival and Djourou's resurgence all happened by injuries and chance, not because of the manager's clever planning.
No mention either of signings - Koscielny, Squillaci and Chamakh - which haven't worked, or his continued support of deadbeats like Denilson, Diaby and the hugely undisciplined Eboue.
Not to mention the lack of experience and 'winners' in the dressing room, the injury crisis which has been ongoing for five seasons (more than just bad luck?) and his own desire to absolve himself and the players of any responsibility by blaming third parties for Arsenal's problems.
I wonder which narrative will survive the summer?
