Robert Langham
(Ed’s note – This week, Arsène Wenger celebrated his 20th anniversary as mananger at Arsenal. When he first arrived, The Gooner ran a piece by a writer who knew a little more about the Frenchman than most of us, and was able to predict the shape of things to come. We are re-running Robert Langham’s article, 20 years on to mark the anniversary of Arsène’s tenure at the club.)
Arsène who? Barked the tabloids when the name of the current boss of Nagoya Grampus Eight became linked with Arsenal. A typically patronising reaction from the press concerning a fanbase who are certainly more knowledgeable than they are given credit for but only to be expected I suppose.
Admittedly, it is probably fair to classify Arsène Wenger as an ‘unknown’ in English football circles despite being linked with the post of Technical Director at the Football Association as recently as a couple of months ago. The average fan in the Barn or Finsbury Park Tavern would probably confess their comparative ignorance of the man, so what type of coach is he?
Wenger had a relatively undistinguished playing career with a selection of sides from Eastern France – Mulhouse, Mutzig and Vauban – about the level that such luminaries as Lawrie McMenemy and Graham Taylor played their football, but before you tear up your season ticket in despair, a good playing record doesn’t necessarily equate to a natural genius for good management – just ask Alan Ball. Indeed, as soon as he became a coach, Wenger came into his own. His early spell at Nancy showed him to be a man of unusual talent – the type of coach who can pluck players out of obscurity and transform them into top flight performers. If anyone looks at the statistics of Wenger’s spell in charge of the Lorraine club, they may be ever so slightly unimpressed – after all, his stint in charge did include a relegation – but Nancy are a small club with small expectations and the cognoscenti were obviously impressed enough because Monaco came in for him and that’s where things really took off.
Monaco’s march to the French championship in 1987-88 was never really in doubt from the first match where the side clicked immediately in defeating Marseille 3-1 at the club’s hi-tec Stade Louis II. The cornerstones of the side were Glenn Hoddle and Mark Hateley – both produced outstanding form as the rest of the team gelled around them. The success was notable for it very much being the team’s. Despite the Englishmen’s key role, it was as a unit that the team really impressed. It is fair to say that the Championship constitutes Wenger’s outstanding achievement to date.
The following year’s European Cup campaign was to end ignominiously with defeat at the hands of Galatasaray and with Marseille dominating the domestic scene in the early nineties, the Monègasques could have sunk back into obscurity. It is to Wenger’s credit that they did not. The club finished second in 1991 and 1992, third in 1989, 1990 and 1993 and lifted the French Cup in 1991 A fair degree of European success also ensued. An historic semi-final victory over Roma in the 1992 Cup Winners’ Cup set Monaco up for a crack at being the first French side to win a European trophy and a Werder Bremen team almost devoid of stars hardly looked the most unwelcoming of opponents after the Italians. As it turned out however, Werder strolled to a 2-0 win. Monaco’s other near miss at European glory occurred in 1994 when they competed in the Champions Cup at the expense of the disgraced champions Marseille. On their way to the semi-finals via the Champions League, one or two notable victories were recorded but Milan were to prove too strong and a 3-0 defeat in the San Siro was a fair reflection of the balance of play.
Wenger’s influence on all these events cannot be over emphasized. Despite the enormous spending powers bestowed upon him by Monaco’s aristocratic owners, he managed to pick up some real jewels for next to nothing. George Weah was a complete unknown when Monaco recruited him – it is almost entirely down to Wenger that he reached the status of European Footballer of the Year by 1995. The rumours linking the Liberian with Arsenal may be fanciful but if one man can persuade him to come to London, it is Wenger. Another more recent ‘Wenger-man’ to be transferred to Serie A was the French international full back Lilian Thuram who had an exceptional Euro 96. Wenger’s sides were notable for their defensive solidity – built around veteran goalkeeper Jean-Luc Ettori and the central defenders Roger Mendy and Emmanuel Petit, but it would be wrong to suggest they lacked style and flair. Apart from Hoddle, the list of players who have worked under Wenger is very impressive – Enzo Scifo, Patrick Battiston, Rui Barros, Jürgen Klinsmann – all household names in European football, all players of the highest quality and united in their admiration of the Frenchman.
Unsurprisingly, Wenger started to attract the attention of other clubs throughout Europe. Sampdoria and, ironically, Werder Bremen were amongst those rumoured to be keen on acquiring his services, but it was Bayern Munich who expressed the most explicit interest. After a frantic period of soul-searching, loyalty won the day and a decision was taken to stay by the Mediterranean. Unfortunately, as is so often the case, this loyalty was not repaid and after a run of 4 defeats in a row, Wenger was given the big heave-ho. A spell in the wilderness followed but a top coach like Wenger was never going to be out of work for long and he duly signed a contract with Gary Lineker’s old club in Nagoya to the tune of a supposed £700,000/year. Grampus Eight were a poor side – a kind of Coventry of the J League before Wenger took over – but he transformed them from relegation candidates to a top two side and Cup winners within a year.
Indeed, the signings of Rémi Garde and Patrick Vieira are astonishingly reminiscent of Wenger’s initial activity when he reached Japan. He imported two French journeymen, Gerald Passi and Franck Durix, together with ex-Marseille man Dragan Stojkovic. The tactic of bringing in his own men worked wonders. The J-League is improving all the time – witness Japan’s win over Brazil in the Olympics and extreme misfortune to lose to England at Wembley in 1995 – so it would be facile to suggest that Wenger was always going to be a big fish in a small pond in the land of the rising sun.
So – those are the facts – but the suspicion remains that most Arsenal fans are uneasy about the appointment of someone with no direct experience of English football. A look at the previous non-nationals to be in charge of British clubs is quite discouraging – Dr. Josef Venglos’s year at Villa went downhill from the moment Inter Milan overturned a 2-0 first leg deficit in the UEFA Cup, Ossie Ardiles did well with Swindon and West Bromwich Albion but as soon as he stepped across the threshold of the big clubs – Newcastle and Spurs – things suddenly went awry, Ivan Golac transformed Dundee United from Championship contenders to relegation material, Danny Bergara’s success at Stockport is not really a relevant comparison and Ruud Gullit’s reign at the Bridge is as yet too short to be properly judged.
However, it has to be said that there is no real reason why an intelligent economics graduate who speaks English and whose record is impeccable cannot do the trick. My one reservation does not concern Wenger’s ability – that is not in question. Indeed, had he been offered the job a few years ago, I think Mark Hateley’s opinion that Arsenal will win something within a year of the appointment would have been true. It’s just now the stakes seem to be much higher with even small fry like Middlesbrough and Chelsea spending bucketloads of money and the likes of Manchester United almost on another planet. It will need a strong man to bring trophies back to Highbury.
These days, the author, a Reading fan, is one of two enthusiasts behind a primarily Football League website which has been running for seven years. thetwounfortunates.com is well worth a look, and their twitter account is Twitter@twounfortunates
The current issue of The Gooner will be on sale at the home matches v Chelsea today. Buyers at the ground also get a free A2 size poster of Alexis Sanchez. The issue can also be bought online here. (The next issue has been delayed until the game against Swansea due to the rain affecting sales at the Southampton match.)
