Graham Perry
The talk of Referendum on EU membership is getting to us. At Arsenal we have a referendum twice a week! Every Arsenal match is a trigger for new assessments of the future of the Manager. Lose and the He Must Go brigade fill the airwaves, the blogs and the tweets. Win and the He Must Stay brigade do the same. How about we take a vow of abstinence. Think of Lent and commit to silence on the subject. A plaintive cry. It won’t happen. We are all too toxic to put the subject to one side.
But we should. We are too quick to react. We make instant judgments and reach pretty speedy conclusions only to review the after the next match if things change. The home defeat by Swansea was a low point. No question. Coming on the back of the United defeat it led people to believe that the well was dry. The capacity to turn around had gone. We were down and out. Wenger Out – if not now then by the end of the season.
Then we have the performance at WHL. Written off by most we gave a very creditable performance. THFC opened well but had little to show for it. The new combination of Coquelin and Elneny gave us something new and allowed Ramsey more freedom which he – and Bellerin – used so effectively for a well worked first goal. Then the sending off. Yes I know it was “irresponsible”, “stupid” etc but it was also heat of the moment. Kane is so good. We know it. The players know it. Brains get addled. Pressure gets to the best. The tackle went in and the red card changed everything. THFC got the equaliser when we did not clear the cross from a corner and then Kane scored a great goal. Both defensive weaknesses.
But goals get scored and not every goal is a sign of defensive ineptitude. That said what concerned me was the room that Kane had before he shot. Gabriel seemed to freeze. He did not know whether to challenge Kane or keep his line. He stuck. He didn’t twist. It was the wrong decision and Kane was allowed to set up a superlative shot unchallenged. We were down but were we out? Were we beaten? This is the moment for character – individuals have to raise themselves to enable the team to move up a gear or two. The pass to Sanchez was excellent and our hero – trying but missing in recent weeks – drove himself forward and got the crucial goal. Celebration. We are smiling. THFC have gone quiet. The Drama of a Derby.
It really was a big moment. The question was asked of our team. Did we have it or not? Were we powder puff or was there something left in the locker? Were we going to collapse or were we going to respond? Defining moments. Lose to THFC even with 10 men and fall six points behind and four defeats on the run and we were finished. It was that big, that important. We responded. We dug deep. We went at it. We took the game to THFC and we scored an uplifting goal. No question – we were up and THFC were down. Imagine the furore at our end if we had squandered a 2-1 lead against ten men. Big Moment. There was our character. If it was a flash in the pan we are done for. However, if it triggers a run we are in with a shout.
So this is my point – leave Wenger In/Wenger Out till the end of the season. Mature judgment based on the whole season. See where we are. How we have performed. Where we might be going. To do this then and not now we have to be something we aren’t – dispassionate, objective, open-minded. These are not qualities that come to the fore at present – understandably I accept. We are all dominated by what has happened, the failures rather than the successes. The Denilsons and the Bendtners rather than the Bellerins and the Sanchez’s. But this is my recommendation. We are all too close to the action – to close the ups and downs. Draft the stroppy letter but leave it in the bottom drawer for 24 hours. Revenge is a course best served cold and the rest.
We have 27 points to play for. Wait till May and then let’s vote on Wengexit – about the same time we vote on Brexit. In the meantime one for all and all for one. Old fashioned term maybe but the best sentiment. We can do it.
All the Best
Graham
*Follow my tweets @arsenalcircular
