DW Thomas
Ok. This article has been brewing for a while now, simmering in my mind. I put it off many times, and watched the Euros come and go. I must admit the tournament was OK, but not really that entertaining. The World Cup is so much better, because you add the flavour and style of the South Americans, Africans, and others to spice things up. Yes, Europe’s best was on show, but look at France and the Dutch. They were an embarrassment to the history of those two once-great sides. Nasri and RvP had pretty poor showings, and both their teams did not get far. At least Kos looked good in his one appearance. I have been reading a lot of news this summer regarding Arsenal and football in general. I love the possibility of reading about transfers and the potential of improving our team. Until today.
I am a big film buff and one of my top five of all time is The Shawshank Redemption. The film itself is about a man wrongly convicted for his wife’s murder and how his life unfolds behind bars till he escapes and gets retribution and redemption. One of my favorite lines of all time, in any film, is in this remarkable movie. “Get busy living, or get busy dying.” Like the main character, Andy Dufresne, Arsène Wenger has been blasted and persecuted quite a bit these last few years without winning anything. He has been in a trophy-less prison, and has seen his philosophy turned on its head, his best players leave, and now this year again, with today’s headlines, RvP (our captain!) is off due to disagreements with those that run Arsenal. He says, “..unfortunately in this meeting it has again become clear to me that we in many aspects disagree on the way Arsenal should move forward.” This coming just days after Wenger said the following: “We want to keep Robin van Persie at all costs, because we depend on him offensively. I have always supported him even in the hardest times, and I hope he will end his career at Arsenal.”
It is these two quotes on which I will focus. They have proven to be the straws that finally broke this camel’s back. Back to the film comparison, though. Unlike Andy Dufresne, Arsène and Arsenal continue to repeat the same huge, monumental mistakes. They are unwilling and/or unable to take this club forward and learn lessons. Andy Dufresne did all he could to make his and his mates’ lives better while in Shawshank Prison. Only when he finds the true story to his wife’s murder does the impetus begin to push him to escape his dead-end life as a prisoner innocently convicted. Unlike Andy, Arsène cannot free himself from his shackles, if he sees them at all, and do the things that are required to keep our best players, convince the fans that we are getting better, and actually, truly, challenge for a significant trophy. Arsène badly needs his redemption. He must learn from mistakes.
Now, read our captain’s quote again, carefully - “unfortunately in this meeting it has again become clear to me that we in many aspects disagree on the way Arsenal should move forward.” Understand, this is our current captain talking. It would be one thing if we hadn’t seen this before. If he does want to go to City, and ends up there, I think I might be sick for a little while about this team, especially if Groundhog Day comes next May. Many of us eat, breathe, and sleep Arsenal. It is a glorious hobby, in which we invest huge amounts of time, money, and emotion hoping mainly for one thing: a team that can compete for trophies and deliver those moments of brilliance we remember our whole lives.
To hear Robin’s words feels like the proverbial knife in the back. But, at the same time, can you blame him? Yes and no. Yes, we can blame him because Arsène stuck by him and, in eight seasons, he has really only given us two good ones. The club stuck by him through thick and mostly thin, injury after injury. Now, with one amazing season, he wants to leave. Maybe that was the club’s own undoing - they were not ruthless enough. On the other hand, no, we can’t blame him, as any man should want what’s best for him and his family. Who would begrudge someone changing jobs for double the pay with better chances at future success? I would not. For me it comes down to loyalty. Arsenal have been loyal, and look where it has left them. It’s easy for RvP to leave a tough situation versus fighting it out and trying to make our team better. It could very well be two years in a row we lose our best player and captain. That is beyond a joke. It is criminal negligence. It is the dagger in the heart of all Arsenal fans!
Now for my most important point - read Arsène’s quote again: “we want to keep Robin van Persie at all costs, because we depend on him offensively. I have always supported him even in the hardest times, and I hope he will end his career at Arsenal.” This statement, looked at with Robin’s, is the stuff of fairytales and fantasy. Like a phony tabloid soap opera story. You can’t write this kind of stuff if you tried! Our manager talks about RvP ending his career at Arsenal. Is he completely out of touch with reality or is he now being hoodwinked by his players and their slippery agents each summer? Sure, we may not get a player as good to replace him, but you cannot be held hostage by a player wanting more, either in money or trophies. If he wants to go, we cannot keep him for the last season of his contract. Unless some sort of message is sent if we do. All fans know that is a wish no-one with any sense would see through. So sell him, get a very good price and reinvest in a player of equal calibre. Replace Cesc too, and we can be great again. Follow that with other proven talent, a couple more good defenders, and I can’t complain about the efforts on behalf of the club and manager.
But, that’s the real issue isn’t it. We can’t compete anymore, not really. We don’t really have the overall depth as a team to keep up with those that can compete. 19 points off the lead is six wins and one draw - a gulf! Arsène’s quote about Spain’s boring possession-style recently in winning the Euros, and the ones about RvP, show dents in a once-strong armour, don’t they? I feel bad for him. This may be his lowest moment as Arsenal manager, at least that I can remember. Even worse than losing Fabregas (who is even better and was more valuable than RvP, in my opinion) or the 2006 CL. Cesc left to go home. He made no comments, at least that I can recall, similar to RvP’s. Cesc had many good seasons and just won his third major trophy with arguably the best national team in history, and now plays on the best club team as well. Henry and Vieira departed after winning trophies and left behind brilliant memories. They are legends. What has RvP won? An FA Cup as a bit-part player? What else? A captain who looks to go elsewhere never having won with his club was never really a good choice for captain, was he? Down with the ship and all that. We need winners. Let’s buy a couple with the money we get and already have in the bank (and no, I am not counting Giroud or Podolski!). If real, obvious, clear intent is not shown by this club, manager and board, this summer, before next season begins, then time is up. The con is over. No more grifting please. Just do the honest work, Arsène and improve the team. Get busy winning, or get busy leaving.
