Kevin Whitcher
The protest march demanding no new contract for Arsene Wenger was vociferous and well-attended. No-one wanted things to reach this level, but at least it leaves the board in no doubt that fans are now prepared to mobilise to avoid further repeats of the kind of collapse we saw from Arsenal last night. The result that followed merely confirmed why the manager is a spent force.
Arsene has never done defence as such. He relies on his senior players to sort out that side of the game, and he hasn’t got enough of the right type and hasn’t had since the break up of the Invincibles. The consequence is two FA Cups in the ten seasons since the move from Highbury. From a potential 40 trophies, it’s not a great return for a club with Arsenal’s means and trophy winning opportunities. Ultimately, Arsenal’s defending, or lack of it, has cost them dear so many times.
Last night didn’t really matter in the greater scheme of things. The tie was done and dusted in Munich. However, it was an opportunity to at least restore some pride after four defeats in the previous six fixtures. Arsenal started well. Theo Walcott hit the target and beat Manuel Neuer to lift the crowd (or at least the three quarters of ticket buyers that bothered to turn up) and make them dream of the impossible. Walcott, enthused by his goal, fired wide afterwards when he would have been better centering. TV replays showed that he should also have been awarded a penalty for a challenge by Alonso, but it was difficult to see with the naked eye. So not a stonewall penalty as Wenger subsequently claimed.
Early in the second half, Giroud had a free header which he put over, and that was that for Arsenal’s chances. Arsene Wenger complained that the Bayern penalty should not have been awarded because Lewandowski was offside. I’ve watched it about three times since and Nacho Monreal is playing him on. Koscielny brought him down for an indisputable spot kick and the referee issued him a yellow card. That it then became red was a bit of a shambles and admittedly the situation was badly handled. Why was the card changed? I can only think the referee thought that there might have been cover for Koscielny but was corrected by the official behind the by-line.
More pertinent, Lewandowski was in position to draw the foul because the visitors had cut through Arsenal’s ranks in a similar fashion to that witnessed in the first leg. Arsene had 11 days to work on his team’s defensive solidity, or allow Steve Bould to, between the matches against Sutton United and Liverpool. I suspect they didn’t.
So down to ten men, a successful penalty made it 1-1. 10 man Arsenal against a full strength Bayern Munich side (suspension to Phillip Lahm allowing). What chance of scoring four in the remainder of the game and not conceding? It was time to consolidate and see the match out with pride intact. However, the team evidently felt they had nothing to lose and what followed would not have surprised anyone. The next 35 minutes saw the stands gradually empty until there were maybe 15,000 left at the full time whistle, more exiting with each successive Bayern goal.
In the post match conference, Arsene blamed the referee for the result. Granted, he made a shambles of the red card, but it was undoubtedly a penalty and the red card was probably the correct award, unless the rules have been changed. So this was a classic case of a manager shifting the blame away from himself, something we have got used to with Arsene. He never takes responsibility for his own failings because he has zero humility.
Anyway, another last 16 European exit confirmed. Arsenal have not won a European knockout game at home for five years. The players are unmotivated and there is an air of freefall. Alexis Sanchez is 95% not going to be at the club next season unless the club take drastic action. I believe there must be an issue with them awarding any player more wages greater than the manager, a policy that limited their ability to sign N’Golo Kante last summer, and is putting a ceiling on the offers being made to Sanchez and Ozil. It’s a question that needs to be asked of the manager or the board as it’s very relevant to football today. I have asked before whether anyone thinks Luis Enrique is earning more than Lionel Messi.
Anyway, the club has been allowed to descend to a level whereby it is going to take at least a couple of seasons for the next manager to turn this around. A lot of players need to be shown the door if they cannot respond to the kind of coaching they are evidently not getting under Wenger. The prospect of Wenger actually having the gumption to continue for two years, let along the board allowing him to does not bear thinking about. How many repeated humiliations are Arsenal prepared to take?
Not being in the Champions League next season would at least allow a new manager to work on the team, and play the stiffs in the Europa League, exiting that as quickly as possible. The work that Conte has managed to do at Chelsea will take longer, even under someone of the quality of Allegri. The reason being that a season before Conte arrived, most of the players he had at his disposal had won the Premier League. That’s territory unknown to anyone at London Colney. There is more work to do, more deadwood to shift.
The rebuild is a fact. What recent matches have revealed is that a lot of the squad aren’t actually of the standard required, especially in midfield. There will be at least two seasons required to return the club to one capable of a challenge for the title. Additionally, the directors need to look at building a structure whereby the manager simply deals with coaching the first team and preparing them for matches. Take a look at the organization in place at Manchester City, Chelsea and Bayern Munich. Get decent scouts on board and ideally, experienced football heads determining football strategy. The current situation? “If the manager does not have a plan, we keep quiet”. The words of Chairman, Sir Chips Keswick in October 2014.
There is no point delaying what needs to happen. It is difficult to see how the team as it is, completely unmotivated and not interested in playing for the manager, cognisant that he is a spent force, will make the top four. An FA Cup semi-final exit will probably put the lid on what has been a horrible season and the end of season lap of appreciation will be conducted to a few thousand hardy souls that remain from about 40,000 that will bother to show up for the Everton game on May 21st. Arsenal could be beaten by Spurs at the Lane, Manchester City and Manchester United at the E******s and trips to Southampton and Stoke now look ominous. That Everton game might even see the side sink to seventh place, which might be a blessing in disguise, assuming of course, that the manager is given his cards in the summer. It would be pointless having extra time to work on tactics and organisation under Arsene.
I suspect I was not alone, but I didn’t feel any pain last night seeing the team collapse. It was just like watching a West End farce at the theatre, only more expensive. I’ve stopped caring about Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal. It’s now just entertainment, a well-worn comedy that continues to deliver with its slapstick collapses. I will only care again when the club install a new manager who will address the basics to make this club genuinely competitive again, from pretenders to contenders.
It’s time for the board of directors to grow a pair and do the right thing for the club and its supporters, not Arsene Wenger’s farcical sense of hubris. Arsenal lost 10-2 on aggregate? If it wasn’t for the referee they’d be in the quarter finals, according to the straw-clutching man in the zipcoat. #NoNewContract – please.
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