Kevin Whitcher
From separate sources, I have heard the news that the arrivals of Marc Overmars (from Ajax) and Raul Sanllehi (from Barcelona) are very likely to happen. Overmars would arrive next summer, although Sanllehi could be in place earlier.
It’s unlikely that Overmars would be given a ‘director of football’ title, as much as anything to save Arsene Wenger’s pride, although if the board do decide that they will dispense with the manager a year before his contract is up, then that would not be such an issue. As an aside to that, Carlo Ancelotti has had two meetings with the club recently, and certainly cannot be discounted as a possible successor to Wenger, should he depart before 2019. I have written previously about Antonio Conte’s interest in the rebuilding job at Arsenal, and it appears that, behind the scenes, the club are preparing for change. Certainly, last season, a number of managerial candidates were sounded out in the event that Arsene Wenger did not renew.
Ultimately, Wenger decided he wanted to stay on – he was determined to have another shot at winning the Premier League and next season, the Champions League. So in the euphoria of the FA Cup Final victory over Chelsea, he persuaded Stan Kroenke, bypassing the board of directors, to give him another two years. Yet, accepted wisdom decrees he no longer has what it takes to lead a team to the title after 13 failed attempts since his last, and currently you’d get long odds on a Gunners’ title next May - for more details on betting with bet365 mobile app click here if you believe different from the bookies. The team’s odds have drifted since the start of the season with the difficulty they had picking up points on the road, with a current price of 50/1 on an Arsenal title available. For those to improve, they’d need a result on Sunday at the Etihad, where they are 7/2 for a draw and 11/2 for a win.
Wenger himself admitted at a stormy AGM last week that his future would be reviewed in the summer – perhaps an understanding that was reached in the meeting with Kroenke. Looking at the club finances, the missing income from the failure to qualify for the Champions League will, in all likelihood, be balanced out by the £28 million transfer surplus from last summer combined with the TV income from the Europa League. So, the bottom line is taken care of short term, but the club’s profile has taken a dent, which will not help with raising money from sponsorship deals, an area where the Gunners compare poorly with other major clubs.
This makes Wenger vulnerable. The board don’t want the negative PR that surrounds poor defeats, wantaway players and rebellious AGMs. Put simply, it damages the brand. Although the manager would probably choose to stay on forever, business-wise, it could be a risk to indulge him.
The other aspect of this is that the board are aware that they need to update both themselves and the structure of the club’s footballing operation. They will not publicly admit that they are not fit for purpose, but currently, they can get away with being largely figureheads because – 1) Arsene Wenger makes all the footballing decisions and 2) What Stan Kroenke says goes in terms of Arsene’s position. For the time being, Ivan Gazidis is working with two hands tied behind his back. Yet the experience of the unhappiness amongst shareholding supporters at the AGM won’t have been lost on the directors, and they will not want a repeat next season. It was the fans’ response to the perceived repeated failings on the pitch. And critically, Stan Kroenke was there to witness it, rather than being cossetted away in Colorado.
So, if this season goes the way of most others, and the club fail to challenge for the title once more, then change is highly likely. The number of staff Arsenal employ on the football side has unquestionably increased significantly, but it is the key appointments that are lacking. David Dein was replaced by a non-director with less authority in the form of Dick Law. That was a step backwards, but one that allowed the manager to increase his power. Ivan Gazidis effectively replaced Keith Edelman (albeit after Ken Friar had held the reins for just over a year). It was arguably an improvement, but the new arrival found himself restricted in what he was able to achieve, his plans over-ridden by the newly-empowered Wenger.
Both of Overmars and Sanllehi are board level appointments, and would placate those requesting more football experience in the directors’ box. Critically, the latter would not be adverse to dealing with the super-agent sharks that Wenger refuses to do business with, thus preventing Arsenal from the possibility of acquiring players such as Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Additionally, there is room for both at the club. Overmars would in all likelihood take an overseeing role regarding the club’s footballing strategy, with a view to addressing both the number of homegrown players that the club utilize (Ajax being a perfect model for this) and obvious weaknesses in the current first team squad (the discipline of the central midfield a blatant issue that has not been properly addressed for several campaigns). Sanllehi is a transfer fixer and can work behind the scenes outside of the transfer window in co-operation with Overmars and a revised scouting team to secure the best prospects – given Arsenal’s rebuilding job will not be one where they can match certain clubs in the market, as long as Kroenke remains in control.
The club has to join the 21st century in the way it operates. The current method, outlined by Sir Chips at a the 2014 AGM as “If Arsene has a plan, we back him, if he doesn't have a plan, we keep quiet”, isn’t cutting it anymore and the board were undoubtedly made aware of this by the normally respectful shareholders, who will not be bought off with an FA Cup. Arsene may not like the probable changes that will be in place by the start of next summer’s transfer window, but he may not even be around for that to matter a jot if the speculation proves to be correct.
