Arsene Wenger is maddeningly stubborn. Aside from showing a
chronic reluctance to closing on major deals, he also has a tendency to go into
several matches tactically unprepared. He
displays an incurable liking towards the diminutive-shaped creative midfielder, adding
them to Arsenal despite having us having surplus. In addition, his constant
overplaying of essential Arsenal cogs infuriate me. I used to be a huge critic
of Arsene Wenger.
Notice the ‘used to be’, because my aversion to Wenger at
Arsenal has decreased a lot now. A lot of positives have surrounded Ashburton
Grove recently, and not all of them are linked with Alexis Sanchez.
The deadwood have been shown the door. From having Denilson
at the heart of our midfield and the uninspiring sight of Bendtner up front,
Arsenal now have a genuine Zidane-esque player in Aaron Ramsey and the
hardworking trio of Giroud, Santi Cazorla and Theo Walcott to cheer on. Wenger
has seemingly realized that having a clear-cut substitute starting XI is the
wrong way to go, and has built a more egalitarian squad to surround
record-signing Mesut Ozil. Imagine having Podolski, Wilshere, Rosicky and
Oxlade-Chamberlain for depth, when three years ago it was Andre Santos, Park
Chu Young and Gervinho.
My main concerns always lied with Arsene’s backroom staff.
Dick Law was making a transfer saga of the average Gervinho, while his scouters
were recommending the wrong people to the boss. Indeed, the last rough gem that
we unearthed and refined was Laurent Koscielny of four years ago! In addition,
our medical staff were notorious in keeping players injured for prolonged
periods, while our famed youth academy hasn’t delivered many exciting prospects
since Jack.
That’s all changing. Andries Jonker is a man with new and
exciting ideas, and a man who will doubtless reform the static nature of our
negotiating staff and outdated medical techniques. His appointment has meant
that Arsenal have sought outside help for the first time in a long time,
something which is uncharacteristic with Wenger’s “internal solutions” agenda.
Ivan Gazidis may be taking a firm grip on the club.
Arsenal are knocking down the foundations and rebuilding
them, rather than plastering over the cracks.
In the Sanchez deal, more than the quality of the player,
what pleased me more was the timing of the transfer. While Mesut Ozil was
supposed to be the starting point of a new era, the deal always reeked of a
panic purchase. It wasn’t a cleverly thought-of move; it was more of a reactive piece
of business to a lackluster beginning to the season.
Alexis Sanchez speaks otherwise. In him, Arsenal have bought
exactly what was needed, and unlike last summer, they’ve done it early under
not too much pressure. There is no baggage one could attach to the Sanchez deal, simply because there isn't any. I personally reckon that Arsene has regrown profound
appetite for the Premier League and the Champions League, which is why he has
moved so decisively and early for a marquee signing like Sanchez.
I was mightily pleased when Arsenal won the FA Cup, but a
niggling regret always remained because Arsenal had faltered again where it
mattered. Towards the end, we were irrelevances in the trophies a club of
Arsenal FC’s status should compete for – the EPL and the Champions League. Not
to downgrade the importance of winning the most prestigious cup competition in
the world, but I have always demanded competitiveness at the highest stage from
Arsenal, rather than contending ourselves with cups.
We aren’t a cup team, we’re not Tottenham.
What we saw from Arsene was proper ambition. They were
always doubts on whether he had the desire left to take the league home, doubts
propagated by his refusal to buy Fabregas, Costa and Vela. However, day before
yesterday’s actions showed little room for doubt. Wenger was saving up to push
the boat out, because he wants the big prizes.
Winning the FA Cup has rekindled the fire within him. Le Professeur
has been reborn.
I still expect some tactical naivety from him in big games,
and I still expect his annoying habits of overplaying key players to continue.
That’s just who he is. However, for the first time in a long time, I expect his
focus to be greater than ever in delivering the trophies fans rightly demand
for.
Starting against Manchester City.
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