Kevin Whitcher
30th May 2014. Arsenal announce that Arsène Wenger has signed on for a further three seasons. Stan Kroenke: "Sustained excellence is the hardest thing to achieve in sport. The fact Arsenal has competed at the top of the game in England and Europe throughout the time Arsène has been manager is the ultimate testimony to his consistency of performance, talent and ambition.”
Arsène Wenger: “"We are entering an exciting period. We have a strong squad, financial stability and huge support. We have gone through fantastic periods and also periods where we have had to stick together. Every time when that togetherness was tested I got the right response. Hopefully we can make some more history. I am sure we can."
Arsenal had won their first trophy in nine seasons, Mesut Ozil had completed his first campaign at the club and the following weeks would see him joined by Alexis Sanchez. Optimism was high. The next three years saw one summer in which no outfield player was bought in the transfer market, consistent last 16 exits in the Champions League and the failure to mount a title challenge that lasted into the final two months of the season.
So here we are again. Yesterday I received notification that the end of season Arsenal supporter’s event will take place on Thursday June 29th. The timings are as follows:
6.30pm - Reception with light refreshments
7.30pm - Welcome from Ivan Gazidis
Q&A with an ex-Arsenal player
8.30pm - Close
I won’t be there, and if the man has an ounce of principle, neither will Ivan Gazidis. I am aware he has offers of work back in the States, earning bigger money than he is on now for being Arsène’s poodle, firmly put back in his place by Wenger’s wooing of the majority owner.
The BBC’s David Ornstein reported yesterday that “Wenger and club owner Stan Kroenke met on Monday to determine the Frenchman's future, with the decision relayed to directors at a Tuesday board meeting.” What kind of way is that to make the major decisions at a football club? And more to the point, what exactly is the point in having a board of directors? Much as I am not one to join in the chant of “Ivan Gazidis, what the f*** do you do?” I can understand the reason for the query after reading that.
In terms of a coach that can win things for the club, Ivan Gazidis stated in an interview to the club’s media channel, “You won’t find any better candidates than Arsène Wenger”. Quite how that conclusion has been reached I would like to know, but those that have claimed the people in theory running the club don’t have a clue about football have a strong argument after hearing that, because it seems to ignore the evidence of the previous decade.
I also watched the Arsène Wenger one, in which he emphasized unity between the players, the supporters and the club. Good luck with that one when Alexis Sanchez makes his decision on the next four years of his football career.
The official announcement came out today, with the club PR team coming up with the following words to put in Stan Kroenke’s mouth: “Our ambition is to win the Premier League and other major trophies in Europe. It’s what the fans, players, staff, manager and board expect and we won’t rest until that is achieved. Arsène is the best person to help us make that happen. He has a fantastic track record and has our full backing.” The statement also claimed that “Arsène and Chief Executive Ivan Gazidis have conducted a full review of our on and off the pitch activities to identify areas for improvement to build a sustained title challenge.” When did this happen? Reputedly they also met on Monday, so that full review must have been something along the lines “Ivan – Just shut up and get back in your box, I am the top bitch around here, and if you don’t believe me, ask Stan.”
Wenger’s words on the statement included, “We’re committed to mounting a sustained league challenge and that will be our focus this summer and next season. I am grateful to have the support of the board and Stan in doing everything we can to win more trophies.”
No wait, there’s more. Ivan Gazidis said, “There is no complacency anywhere at this club. Our goal is to compete for and win trophies here and in Europe. Everything we do is designed to make that happen and we will be working hard on and off the pitch this summer to improve and make a strong challenge next season. The club has grown beyond recognition in every aspect in recent years and we have the platform to be successful and meet the ambitions we and our fans share.”
I do so hope they are right, and the club are in the title race past Easter next season. But you know what, I have heard all of this before. It’s basically PR guff. Arsène genuinely wants to win, but hasn’t got what it takes anymore in the two biggest competitions – there is no evidence that supports any other argument. But he’s a sad old man with no life outside of his job and wouldn’t know what to do without Arsenal. Forget two years, unless the ownership of the club changes, Arsène will be running the show in his 80s. Arsenal won’t win the title in that time. My personal ambition now is to live long enough to see another manager at the club.
Ivan Gazidis genuinely wants to win, but can’t do anything about it. So much for using last season’s complete collapse as a catalyst for change. Are we going to see some of Arsène’s yes men shown the door? Don’t hold your breath. Wenger blamed his own technical team for the 10-2 exit from the Champions League this season. And yet they will still be in the job next season. Go figure.
Stan Kroenke isn’t so fussed about winning, his teams in the States prove that. Mediocrity with asset value is the name of the game. Arsenal actually do better than those teams, and Stan just loves sitting near Prince William in the Royal Box at Wembley in a suit that looks like it came out of the costume wardrobe for The Addams Family. He also loves being smooched by Arsène, who generally looks down on anyone that has not worked in football (and many who have, but don’t agree with everything he does), but Wenger is intelligent enough to put on an act when he knows where his bread is buttered.
So there you have it. Arsène runs the club single-handedly in an age where every other leading European outfit has a team of experienced football people working together, in which the first team coach concentrates on coaching the first team. One thing this week has proved is that the only way there will be a change of manager is the death of the current incumbent (he’ll never retire) or a change of owner.
Asda is a wholly owned subsidiary of Walmart. If you want to persuade Stan Kroenke to sell up, you have choices when you do your weekly shop. Just a thought.
The ‘Wenger Out’ protests are dead. As long as Stan controls the ownership of the club, only relegation to the Championship is going to see a new face in the dugout. And Arsène will always get enough points with the club’s resources to ensure that fate is avoided.
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