Kevin Whitcher
Ivan Gazidis addressed Arsenal supporters in what has now become an annual event after the season’s conclusion. These q&a sessions began life as an Arsenal Supporters Trust event, and over the years, have been hosted by Keith Edelman, Ken Friar and now Gazidis. Last year, it ceased to become an exclusively Trust event and was opened up to shareholders, AISA members (saving Gazidis the separate commitment of addressing the AISA AGM as had happened in the past in the late summer) and other supporters groups, such as RedAction, supporters clubs and in the spirit of glasnost, I imagine even the Black Scarf Movement (I did spot some BSM faces there anyway).
The format is now pre-submitted questions followed by questions being opened to the floor and is hosted by Dan Roebuck, of Arsenal TV. One imagines it will be available on Arsenal TV at some point in the next day or two.
I had the chance to have a brief chat with Ivan Gazidis before the meeting got into full flow and he admitted that the once annual Arsene Wenger q&a event was now a thing of the past due to the way that anything Arsene said was sensationalized by the media. So much for the manager’s statement at the October AGM that he would meet fans at the end of the season if they needed him to explain anything. The CEO also expressed the dangers of people tweeting soundbites from events such as these, which do not give the full context of answers and explanations. I pointed out that the event would be more productive if he could give briefer answers and likened his style at previous q&a’s to that of the late 1980s American Football team the New York Giants - who had a reputation as fearsome eaters of the clock. He understood where I was coming from and in fairness, his answers in 2013 were more succinct than previous years.
The key messages relayed to the audience were already given to the press last week and can be read here relayed by John Cross of the Mirror.
Really, for this observer, the most significant aspect of Gazidis’ words in recent weeks is that he has pretty much hung out his manager to dry, whilst still playing the white man and defending him. The unequivocal message that Arsène Wenger has very significant funds to spend and that Arsenal are willing to pay the market rate in transfers and wages means that if the club do fail to improve the team with quality this summer, then it will be down to the manager. In my few moments of conversation with the CEO before the event, he inexplicitly agreed with this view. I suspect an element of frustration carried over from past transfer windows and the attendant flak has persuaded Gazidis to lay his cards on the table so there is no possible argument about whether the funds are available to spend.
The message that Wenger is still the best man for the job will be one that depresses many, with the indication that the board are ready and willing to extend his contract. However, the continuous message that Arsenal ‘outperform their spend’ is one that grates with this listener. Arsenal do not outperform their spend by any means. They spend the fourth highest amount in wages and transfers in England. So fourth place, by Gazidis’ logic, is actually performing at the level that should be expected. But football does not work like that, which is why Manchester United have won so many trophies since the arrival of Roman Abramovich at Chelsea and Sheikh Mansour at Manchester City. A great manager can buck the odds and land silverware.
At the conclusion of the evening, I was chatting with other fans, some of whom want to believe that Arsène can replicate the glory days, and the agreement was that, in terms of the players he has signed in recent years, he has lost his mojo. He does not recruit the quality of player he once did, and this, as much as anything, is why the club have stopped being contenders. It isn’t just about having less money to spend. Bargain players can still be found that have genuine impact in English football, but most of Arsenal’s do not. The club have spent a fair amount in recent seasons, but by and large, they have not spent well.
I wanted to ask a question, but did not get picked from the sea of hands. I would have asked for the CEO’s personal view on why Arsenal are so far behind Manchester United, and Tottenham so close to Arsenal based on the spending of the last two years. Here are the figures I have been given for transfer and wages spending from 2011-2013
Manchester United £418m
Arsenal £397m
Tottenham £259m
Everton £152m
These are not reflected in the relevant points gaps between the teams at season’s end.
It suggests to me inefficiency. My neighbour at the event, Gooner contributor Ian Henry, reminded Gazidis that at a q&a event in 2009, he had said he would be looking at Arsenal’s wage bill with “laser focus” to identify inefficiency, and asked what happened with this and would he be trying harder going forward. The CEO responded with a line about words coming back to haunt him, but it is obvious that when Gazidis did try to get involved in the wages, he was told to butt out by the manager. It is not a healthy situation, as the manager should inform the board which players he wants and leave it to others to do all the transfer negotiations and wage discussions. That Wenger is left to do this has meant that many targets have been missed in recent seasons. He once spent three months coming to agreement with Benfica over a loan deal for Armand Traore to spend a season in Portugal. In the words of Martin Tyler, “that sums it all up.”
Gazidis said that there has been no transfer activity so far this summer because things are still settling down at many clubs with new managers arriving. However, he was conscious that the situation of signing five players at the last minute in 2011 was one that was very undesirable and should not be repeated. The proof of the pudding is of course in the eating, but he seemed fairly bullish that the club would be doing business in good time.
There is no reason Arsenal cannot be like Bayern Munich, he stated. It would take about another two years. Bayern have made three of the last four Champions League finals. A cynic might suggest Arsenal could be more like Bayern Munich a lot more quickly if they replaced Arsène Wenger with Jupp Heynkes, but the reality looks to be more Wenger until 2018. He did once make a Champions League final of course, but we seemed to have better players in those days. However, in the days when the club were winning titles, he never got past the last eight of the competition, so it is difficult to envisage that changing now – the conclusion being that tactically, he is not really up to it.
Gazidis told the meeting that Robin Van Persie’s departure was not about money. There were other issues. He did not specify, but it was quite obvious that footballing ambition and a loss of faith in the club’s ability to satisfy those ambitions were what he meant – not least because the player has said as much. The former captain’s talking up of Alex Ferguson as a manager after eight years under Wenger kind of says it all.
A transcript of the evening has been posted by Tim Stillman here.
A couple of quotes that stuck out for me from my own notes were as follows –
Regarding the coaching staff and their input – “they are not shy in coming forward”. This tallies with reports of a couple of major bust-ups between Wenger and Bould over the course of the season, the suspicion being that Wenger relented after the home defeat to Bayern with a change in the team’s defensive discipline. It will be fascinating to see if the more conservative approach is retained at the start of next season.
On Financial Fair Play – “We hope, we expect, we push but we do not control it. We cannot rely on it. What would we be doing differently with no FFP? Nothing. Bayern Munich are doing the same.”
Conclusion – Gazidis realizes that with Arsenal’s stature and income, trophies are attainable, not least because other clubs have done it. Having seen Arsène Wenger steer the club through what he considers financially lean times, they are going to give the manager the opportunity to return Arsenal to the glory days with a new contract and the increased financial resources those seasons will bring (ironically, said resources will also mean it is more affordable to move him on before 2018, if need be). The notion that Arsène Wenger has “outperformed his spend” is PR guff of the highest order, but the CEO is not going to say anything detrimental about his manager. However, by going public on what the club can do now – “We are now going to have to pay market rates for top players. If we are going to be a world class football team our wage structure will have to evolve – Arsène is on board with that. Arsène is not afraid to pay world class players world class salaries.” – he has made things abundantly clear.
The question then, is whether Arsène Wenger is prepared to pay the market rate for top players? Can a leopard change its spots? Let’s hope it’s an interesting summer for all the right reasons.
Postscript – I chatted to a number of people last night, but one thing I had never heard before was that the club had a long and hard look at Alisher Usmanov to find out about the man’s background, presumably with serious consideration to inviting him on the board. Apparently, some of the things they discovered would preclude any such invitation. So the idea that Usmanov is not welcome because of historic connections with David Dein are wide of the mark. I think, to use Peter Hill-Wood’s famous words about a certain Enos Stanley Kroenke, “We don’t want his sort here” would be closer to the truth.
