Kevin Whitcher
It was a real ‘Where were you when?’ moment for Arsenal fans. A bit like the shooting of JFK, news of John Lennon’s death and 9/11. The morning of 20th April 2018 and the club announcement that Arsene Wenger would be stepping down at the end of the 2017/18 season, a year before his contract was up. Nothing about by mutual agreement, but painted to look like Arsene’s decision. It was patently not.
I was on day three of a five day hypnotherapy course in Buckinghamshire. The phones of everybody partaking were on silent, but you rarely got decent reception in the building the course was being held in anyway. There was a nice garden outside though, and it was a sunny day. So in the morning break myself and my fellow students went outside to catch some sun. My phone was still on silent, but it picked up signal and started vibrating like there was no tomorrow as messages and notifications of missed calls flooded in. I had to phone someone to get some confirmation of what had actually happened and confirm this was official. I was shocked. I did not see this coming, believing that the club would allow Arsene to see out his two year deal even if his power was now obviously being withdrawn from him, the new appointments preparations for a new manager and a fresh approach.
And here we are a year later with Unai Emery as head coach. A lot has changed aside from Arsene. The backroom team has been shaken up significantly. Some faces remain, but many of Arsene’s ‘yes men’ were unceremoniously given their cards, although paid up on the remainder of their deals, which ran for a further year, like the man responsible for their employment. I have no idea what the likes of Arsene’s gofer Paul Johnson are doing now, but truth to tell, they were so well rewarded for their minimal contribution that, assuming they were sensible with their money, they need never have to work again. They were paid for loyalty rather than their talents.
Steve Bould was kept on because he told Emery the truth about the players (which reputedly, Emery already knew, such was his diligence in preparing for the job) and Emery responded by stating he would keep Arsene’s number two on for the remainder of his contract. Financially, it made no difference – Bould would have been paid up like those that were released, so the club lost nothing by making him work out his deal, as well as providing Emery with Bould’s knowhow, which was rarely utitlised under his predecessor. Bould, reputedly on £35,000 a week, will probably not be around next season, given the current cost-cutting ethos at the club. It’s not obvious he’s doing very much at all, which is no different from his previous seasons sitting next to the manager. When Emery discusses things during the game, it’s with his long term number 2, Juan Carlos Carcedo. Interaction with Bould generally seems related to getting the subs prepared to come on. Perhaps Bould is doing more work on the training pitch, but personally, I doubt it. If he is to depart it will be interesting to see if the club announce it before the final home match of the season against Brighton. It will be interesting to see if he seeks work elsewhere.
Ivan Gazidis has gone, and notably so has Sven Mislintat, it appears because once Gazidis departed, he was not going to get promoted to a position of technical director, as Raul Sanllehi filled one of Gazidis’ shoes as one of a two man team in charge of the day to day running of the club. I’ve been informed an Arsenal fan that knows Sanllehi very well that he is a sound guy and feels passionately about the club. It will be interesting to see how things develop under his leadership, and we wait to see who does come in as the technical director, with the attempt to secure Monchi from Roma failing.
The one thing that kept Arsene in the job was his ability to generate profit. The failure on that front was the reason he was given the axe, and he left the club in a weak position if one looks at the growing gap from Arsenal to the two Manchester clubs, and the fact that Liverpool and Spurs have been able to catch up on the balance sheet front. The decline had to be reversed. Ultimately, how quickly this can happen will depend on small margins, but at least the club are dependent on these now rather than being nowhere near fortune having an influence. Arsenal finished last season with 63 points, their current total is 66 with five matches still to play. Emery will at least match the performance of Wenger’s team in Europe last season and possibly better it. There’s no debate that this season has been an improvement on last, although to accelerate the process of rebuild, qualifying for the Champions League will make a significant difference to what the club can do in the summer.
So for those who cautioned “Be careful what you wish for” in their belief that Arsenal should stick with Arsene, the club has not declined from the point that he left it. Unai Emery inherited a group of players who were underperforming in a well-paid stale comfort bubble of complacency, and the manager’s team selections this season, as well as the changes he has made in match preparation, have certainly shaken things up. No-one is guaranteed a starting spot, which has to be healthy. So there is hope for the future where there was none. Arsenal fans are not at war with each other, we don’t have supporters leaving their seats empty on principle (although the culture of picking and choosing which games to attend has unfortunately now become embedded), and we don’t have fans actually hoping the team lose matches so as to hasten a change in the dugout.
As for Arsene, who was adamant that he would be coaching a club somewhere this season, the man who could never see himself retiring looks, at present, to be enjoying a lucrative retirement. I wonder if he will notice that today is an anniversary he’d probably not care to celebrate.
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