Fozzy’s mate 
Having read the spate of close-season articles which, in the main, are "doom and gloom"/"Arsène out' v. "f*** off down the Lane"/"Arsène still knows best", I have, as an analytical person, tried to take the middle ground. I have been mildly critical of OGL in previous pieces, while trying to see behind some of his on-the-face-of-it unfathomable decisions, pointing firmly towards the old Etonian fart and his pals. However, this summer - and I am sure I am not alone - I have been driven to distraction by events or non-events as they could be described, but, if you analyse anything too much without reaching a conclusion, you are liable to go mad, for example, taxation, the financial meltdown or the London riots. So, following this article, I have promised myself that I will no longer attempt to understand the workings of Arsène's mind.
One conclusion I have reached is that AW is not like other managers, who identify a weakness in their squad and then try to fill it. What he does is try to acquire good players at what he sees as good value at any time, in order to create a pool of young talent ready to step in and replace leavers or fill holes at any juncture. While we question the value of signing more attacking players such as Gervinho and Oxlade-Chamberlain, I am sure we would agree that they are good players, at good value, which - in his terms - means players who will have a greater sell-on value than their purchase price and who will be adaptable to the AW way of playing.
The problem, as identified by every other human being on earth, is that this strategy can lead to a glut of players of a certain type, which in Arsène's case are forwards who can also play wide, left or right. It can also lead to prolonged periods of weakness in other areas such as centre-back or goalkeeper, as the right players have, in Arsène's mind, not been available at the right price. This is best illustrated by his proclamations of weakness in these positions over the past two close seasons, which have been followed by a failure to fill the gaps successfully and strengthen the weaker areas. While most of us, including me at times, have declared this as madness, AW would differ and merely say he was following what he thought was the correct strategy and maintaining the courage of his convictions.
At close inspection the comments of Gazidis when addressing the AST are telling. While admitting to problems defending set pieces, he stated that he had one of the best defences from open play, as I have also heard AW say. While I would say that, in fact, for the team who without doubt have the highest level of possession, we should have the lowest goals conceded, AW would say by playing such attacking football we must sacrifice a certain level of solidity. We would say that it is madness to pay £12 million for a 17 year old when we have an abundance of riches in his position , while refusing to pay similar sums for a proven and experienced centre back and standing back and watching Spurs and Villa sign proven, experienced keepers for nominal fees. Again, no doubt he would have some plausible counter-argument.
I have resigned myself finally that no matter how much we moan and hope, “The madness of King Arsène” will never make sense to us. We may long for a change and a manager who actually wants to spend the funds at his disposal by saying “I need a centre-back and have the funds, so I will buy one”. However, for the foreseeable future, AW will remain as our manager. In my opinion, paying the relatively vast sums we do to watch our team entitles us to an opinion despite what some others may say. We will all continue to analyse, praise and criticise, as football and life is about differences, views and opinions. For the sake of your sanity, if you are not Arsène Wenger, do not try to understand or justify his decision making process or madness may only be a short step away!
