Au Revoir, Wenger?

"Fourth place is priority";We, Arsenal fans are so accustomed to these words. Once again Arsenal have slumped and are again fighting with Spurs for the "coveted" fourth place.

The start to the season seemed to good to be true; top of the table, into the round of 16 after progressing from the round of 16, and up and running on the FA Cup. The slump started with the annihilation at Anfield, and it has been downhill since, the only exception being the victory over Tottenham at WHL, with a Rosicky stunner.

We are just not good enough to compete with the big teams in the league, who play at a level above the Gunners. The opposition seems stronger mentally and it soon becomes a case of men vs boys and. Mr. Wenger needs to realize that qualifying for the Champions League is not by any means a successful season. Every year we qualify in dramatic fashion, pipping Spurs on the last day and making it seem like a euphoric achievement and making the fans believe that it has been a good season. The fear factor associated with the Gunners is slowly but surely disappearing, Arsenal is not seen as a tough game on the fixture list by the big clubs and if immediate action is not taken, they stand at the risk of getting left behind. Everton and Spurs are Arsenal's league rivals these days.

Wenger has always considered the Premier League and Champions League of the utmost importance and for this, has many times played weakened squads in the Cups, resulting in an early exit from these competitions and increasing the trophy drought. At least he has changed a bit, and plays first team members in FA Cup rounds, and that has resulted in the team reaching the semi finals, for the first time since 2010. I was looking back at my previous article , where I strongly believed that we would win the title;how naive!! In the present situation, even fourth place is not guaranteed. 

By no means are Arsenal a poor club, we have enough money to attract the world's biggest stars, but Wenger refuses to spend the money, with Ozil being the only one who Wenger seemed ready to splash the cash on. Every transfer window, an unknown French player is signed, and not even from the big French teams, like Marseilles or Lyon, Auxerre, Nantes and Lorient seem the preferred markets. Some of them turn out to be good signings such as Sagna and Koscielny, but most of them fail to make the cut and are soon moved on to the other clubs; Squillaci, Chamakh to name a few. To me Wenger has high self confidence, bordering arrogance, it is in his opinion that he can make achieve success with limited resources and doesn't seem to learn from past mistakes. 

A friend of mine, who is a Chelsea fan, pointed out that if they had such a drought, they would have had 15 managers by now! Now, I am not saying that the Chelsea manager system is preferable, but to a certain extent I think it needs to be applied at Arsenal. Let us take the example of Liverpool, by the end of the 2011-2012 season, they had won the League Cup, their first piece of silverware since 2006, reached the FA Cup final but had finished a lowly eight in the league, behind arch rivals Everton. By no means, was this a bad season, but the Board of Directors didn't feel the club was moving upwards and Dalglish was sacked, he wasn't asked to resign but was Sacked!, simple as that. That is where I admire Liverpool, they replaced club legend and fan favourite, who was in charge for less than 2 years with a young fresh minded manager, who I think will go down as one of Liverpool's greatest managers. The Arsenal board is blinded by Wenger's past achievements and give him contract extensions, hoping he will come good, a bit like the Pakistan Board selecting Afridi for every series. In my personal opinion, Wenger needs to leave, and this is the perfect time to step down; Arsenal have a realistic hope of winning a trophy this year and he can step down with the satisfaction that the trophy drought has ended, and he will be remembered for something more than that. With rumours surfacing that he has already told the team he will be stepping down, it just might be the end of Wenger. I think he needs to reflect back on the past few years, and himself realize that it is time to leave. Arsenal need a young and dynamic manager, who is willing to take risks, and build a new team, with a winning philosophy, maybe someone like a Diego Simeone

 No one can take away what the Frenchman has done for Arsenal; building a new stadium from scratch and still remaining financially strong, going a whole season unbeaten and producing some of the greatest players the world has ever seen, arguably the greatest manager the club has seen. You can take away Arsene from Arsenal, but not Arsenal from Arsene. But first, the former needs to be done.

The Golden Boy

Its been almost 2 years since Cesc Fabregas left Arsenal but in the minds of the Arsenal faithful, he is still one of their own. The sixteen year old who arrived in North London with next to no reputation, left the Emirates as one of the hottest properties in world football.

Despite the FA Cup being the only medal Cesc could take with him back to Spain, he won something of as much importance as a trophy; the hearts of the Arsenal fans. He was a firm fan favourite and I think we Arsenal fans were more upset when we left than when Henry left the club. Cesc did not leave for money, nor did he leave for glory, he went back to his hometown, the club he supported as a teenager, and  the Arsenal fans understood that.

The 2007-2008 season was the year that Cesc came of age, the goals started flowing (most of them sublime) , and he racked up 19 assists, the most in the league. But more than that, it was the passion and dedication he used to play with that won him many plaudits. There have been games where you could say he was poor, but you could never say he didn't give it his all. He took over the armband form William Gallas in 2009, but captaincy didn't change him. Cesc wasn't a born leader, but it was his performances  that would lift the team and act as inspiration for the likes of Theo Walcott and Ramsey. For him Arsenal always came first , as was justified by his penalty against Barca with a broken leg, the brace he scored  off the bench when Arsenal were trailing Villa and he had a hamstring injury. When he didn't play well, he would take full responsibility; after Arsenal were torn apart by Messi at Camp Nou , Fabregas's father said his son was inconsolable and was distraught with his own performance and felt he could have given more for the team.

The difference between Fabregas and players like Van Persie and Nasri is that Cesc didn't show disrespect to Arsenal after leaving, he thanked the fans , the players and Wenger for their contribution to his career and didn't make claims about Arsenal not being ambitious and I am a 100% sure he won't celebrate if he does ever score against Arsenal. He remained a Gooner even after leaving , and even made statements that he hoped Arsenal would win the title and his intention to come back some day.

At Barca , Fabregas blossomed and fit in well into the Barca passing philosophy and cemented his place in the Spain team. But there were times when Barca fans lost patience with him and many a times booed him , those were deeply saddening times for Arsenal fans, to see there captain and idol receive such abuse. Cesc wasn't an instant fan favourite at Camp Nou, but then again all the Barca players live in the shadow of Leo Messi.

The summer transfer window in 2013 was the start of Fabregas - United saga. I think Arsenal fans were more scared about him moving to Old Trafford than the Barca fans, but two failed bids in the region of 30 million confirmed his loyalty to Barca and to Arsenal!..and the Arsenal fans sighed a breath of relief. Cesc has left behind a cauldron of memories. The solo effort against Spurs, that goal against Juventus in the champions League semi final , the freeckick against Aston Villa , I could go on and on. Fabregas was one of a kind and cannot be replaced at  Arsenal. We, Arsenal fans live in the constant hope that he will come back one day , to the actual club of his heart.

Dire Straits For United

What goes up, comes down ; and that is exactly what has happend with Manchester United. After winning the League comfortably last year, the Reds are languishing in 8th and are not showing any signs of improvement.

David Moyes's s arrival has not been as smooth as expected and even Champions League qualification seems a distant dream which is slowly slipping away from the horizon. Not even the staunchest Man City fan would have thought that by January Man Utd will be 13 points of the Premier League summit and struggling to go above 7th in the League. A summer of being linked with the likes of Sneidjer, Fabregas and Baines, the Red Devils only clinched the signing of Fellaini from Everton for a substantial fee of $27 million. Fellaini has failed to fit into the United midfield and many fans were left wondering why Moyes would splash out on the 6 foot Belgian when they already had the ever improving and impressive Carrick protecting their defence. The ageing Manchester United backline was not strengthened and the creative midfielder the fans had been craving for, still remained unfulfilled.

United's downfall started with the anhilation at the Etihad followed by a shock defeat at the hands of  West Brom at Old Trafford. Arguably their best result was the victory over Arsenal at home, one of the few occasions where Moyes's men have put up a respectable performance in front of their own fans. United's form at Old Trafford has been atrocious; under SAF teams would come away from OT feeling happy with a 1-0 loss but today teams like Swansea and Newcastle settle for nothing less than a win. The fear factor has disappeared and it is the Theatre of Dreams for only the away team these days.

United fans find solace in the fact that even Ferguson had a bad start in his early years , but it seems they are trying to console themselves and not convince the opposition fans. They have tried hard to support Moyes and have given him time to settle in. Many United fans have accepted their fate this year, and are already looking forward to the new season. An analogy can be drawn between a class topper who is suddenly struggling to perform well in the new year and Manchester United, no matter however hard they try they just cannot get the required results. Calls for Moyes's resignation have not yet started but if the tide doesn't change for United, let us hope he has sharp ears to hear the knives being sharpened behind his back.

It is not as if Manchester United have lost any big player over the summer, their squad has not changed from last year, so what does that tell us about the impact a Manager can have on a team, even at a legendary club like Manchester United. That winning habit has deserted the Manchester club and so has the winning mentality. They are no longer the comeback kings and struggle to overcome a 1 goal deficit, even with time on their hands. Moyes seems clueless when United fall behind in the game, he seems clueless and his assistant Phil Neville seems more capable of making decisions form the dugout . Moreover, his post match interviews don't project him in a better light , only helping him lose the United fans's trust.

The only silver lining for United and Moyes has been the arrival of Adnan Januzaj at the big stage, the youngster had been a revelation and has won many a game on his own. But is this what it has come to, The 20 times Premier League champions need an 18 year old to change their fortunes? United fans need to remain patient for it could be a long and winding road but could culminate in them becoming greater than before.

GUNNING FOR GLORY

John W Henry asked a question before the season started "What do you think they are smoking at the Emirates"? That's the question that has been on the lips of the rest of the world. 

There is something different about this new look Arsenal side; there is more self belief,more confidence and the hunger and willpower for success is more than evident. The Gunners are playing with the same style and panache, that brought them all the glory in the early 2000's . Completely written off after their opening day loss to Aston Villa; Arsene Wenger and his Arsenal have responded in great fashion and have registered just 2 losses in the League ever since. The Premier League still remains the objective for the North London side, who are still in the hunt for the Champions League and FA Cup. 

Mesut Ozil's arrival has been the catalyst that has propelled the Gunners to heights,that many fans thought were unreachable before the season started. He has changed the mood around the Emirates and it is tough to say who has been more affected by his arrival; the fans or the players. A sublime assist for Giroud in his first game against Sunderland,won the hearts of all the Arsenal fans out there and ever since he can do no wrong in their eyes. Ozil has already racked up 7 assists in Premier League, only behind Rooney who has nine and has hit the back of the net 5 times for the Gunners this season. Even if Ozil doesn't do anything remarkable this season, he would have made as much of a contribution to the team as much as anyone else; he has brought that fear factor back with the Gunners, and has brought back much needed self belief and confidence which was lacking in previous Arsenal squads over the last 5-6 years.  The thought of playing with the 42 million Real Madrid star has left many in awe and in the effort to impress him, they have brought the best out of themselves..

Ramsey's astronomical rise has left all his doubters speechless and Giroud is finally fulfilling the potential he showed last season. In Flamini, Arsenal have found the defensive midfielder they needed . His experience is key to the this young Arsenal side and his passion and drive has made him a true fan favourite. The defensive partnership of Mertesacker and Koscielny has been really solid, ably supported by Gibbs and Sagna on either side.

Crucial wins over such has Newcastle at St.James Park, where Arsenal weren't at their best have but still came away with the three points have added to their title credentials . To win the ultimate prize it is these kinds of games that the Gunners have to slog out and get the three points. This present Arsenal side is one that never gives up; they didn't settle for a nil all draw against Cardiff at the Emirates and got 2 goals in the last 4 minutes to bag all three points. Even against City, at 5-2, they didn't give in and pulled a goal back in the 89th minute,but alas only for Yaya Toure to make it 6-3. 

To bring silverware to the Emirates, Arsenal will need to bring in another striker to reduce some of the pressure on Giroud's shoulders, having only Bendtner as a substitute striker( who hasn't been that bad) and the young Sanago as back up. Someone like a Berbatov or Costa will fit in well at Arsenal but it all rest in the hands of the 63 year old Frenchman. Can Arsenal beat the odds and bring the Premier League trophy to the Emirates for the first time?..