Morning all.
If one man staying at one club for 22 years when half of that time has been pretty drab sounds bonkers, the Love Island winning a gong at the BAFTA Awards last night is even more crazy. Who votes for these things? The world has gone mad.
Anyway, that 22 year reign is up and even though recent press conferences have been a bit predictable, looking back, some of the things Arsene Wenger said, really were a first. I had to steal these from the official Arsenal website, if for no other reason than they made me laugh. Perhaps not at the time but now he’s gone, yes.
Handbrake! I think it’s fair to say that’s been stuck on for a long time. In fact it’s been easier to count the times we’ve played with ‘full freedom’ over the last few years and that’s because we’ve simply not been good enough or other managers knew how easy it was to negate the way we played. Great at attacking when the opposition can’t defend but as soon as we faced an organised team, boy did we huff and puff without success.
This one word at the beginning of what someone is about to say is so annoying, or at least it is for me. It’s like whoever says it believes what they are about to voice is so important, they need to make sure they have ones full attention. It has the reverse effect on me.
Pff! I wonder if this is what he was thinking before signing Silvestre, Squliachi, Kalstrom, Sanogo, Santos etc. Seriously, how many times did he mutter such words only to end up signing no one or some old has been? Many I’d say.
The ‘it was a little bit of yellow and red’ used to leave me wondering. He was of course referring to a bad challenge which yet again a referee had let pass. As for the ‘little bit short’, we’ll those words have been heard about a players fitness just before we don’t see them for weeks on end.
The classic line, one which could be churned out often as season after season our players suffered injuries which kept them out for months. Wilshere, Diaby, Cazorla, Welbeck, Rosicky, Koscielny, Gibbs are just a few who were afforded the ‘like a new signing’ tag.
Cant say I remember him using this one, either that or his words simply fell on deaf ears. Maybe he should have started his sentence with ‘look’ then I’d have heard him!
Anyway, no longer will we hear Arsène Wenger’s little gems about Arsenal or his players during a press conference because his work at the club is done. Thankfully, he managed to end his career with an away victory, albeit the first time this year. Aubameyang made sure of that.
He’s given us some great memories to hold onto. The Invincibles, FA Cup success, double winning seasons and some truly great players who to watch, was nothing but a pleasure. He prolonged the careers of so many players like Nigel Winterburn, Lee Dixon, Tony Adams, Ray Parlour etc. He brought the best out of Wrighty, Bergkamp, Henry, Vieira, Petit and co too but as they left one by one, or sometimes two by two, he begun to struggle. The stadium move didn’t help his cause but even so, Champions League football was always secured somehow.
Arsene Wengers Arsenal career really has mirrored the sport he loves as it’s been a career of two halves. The first half was good, sometimes great. The second, well I think he performed with the handbrake on and his players stuck in reverse.
Thanks for the memories Arsène and everything good you did for our club. I wish you well in all you do from here on.
For Arsenal FC, here’s to a new beginning….
Max Allegri is supposed to have said he wants to stay in Italy with Juventus according to Sky Sports, other sports outlets suggest he wants to be assured of a £200m kitty before he decides whether to say yes to Arsenal or not. Either way, any hopes of him becoming manager look unlikely if he wants to stay put. As much as we’d like to think the best would jump at the chance to manage Arsenal in what’s the most competitive league in football, sometimes people just want to stay where they are. We of all fans should know that.
I’d be surprised though if he didn’t fancy the challenge, the chance to go head to head with the likes of Mourinho, Guardiola, Klopp, Poch and whoever Chelsea appoint next. Imagine how good it’d be for him and us if he beat them all to the Premier League title next season or the one after. It’s not like the Italian league is that competitive is it? What is it, one of Juventus or Napoli win the league, how boring, but safe I guess. Four years at one club is enough Max, say yes and get over to north London sharpish.
Well, a girl can hope…
Have a great day guys, there’s plenty to smile about….
“Four years at one club is enough Max, say yes and get over to north London sharpish.”
I prefer 22yrs myself… come on Max you know you want to!!
Ha ha Lee, how on earth did he last 22 years..
Anyway, he’s gone now and yes, come on down Max.. If not though, I guess it’ll be Arteta, or the young German whose name I can’t spell…
Morning Rico. If the tedium and predictability of the past few seasons wasn’t enough, the sports news outlets now have a vacuum to operate in until the new manager is announced. Though nature abhors a vacuum, the sports journalists (and I use the word lightly), love it. We had a flavour of it yesterday with Gary Neville having his customary Arsenal dig within minutes of the last ball of Wenger’s reign being kicked. After an illustrious managerial career where he won all the big prizes, Neville felt he had the authority to admit how shocked and indeed angry he was that Arsenal hadn’t announced Arsene’s replacement immediately.
He equated a 3-year spend amount with the level of trophy one might expect. If it is that simple we might as well shut the doors of the Emirates now as Man City can ourspend anybody, thereby and according to Neville’s law, making competition for the PL title next year, somewhat redundant. We can all see what he is getting at obviously. It fails to be a comprehensive point though when you factor Leicester into the equation. No doubt Neville would call that a one-off.
As far as Arsenal are concerned and adopting the Neville-plan where spending is concerned, it strikes me that, the more Arsene spent, the worse we got. What branch of Garynomics should we file that one under?
The board will make their choice, Neville will have his dreary say and then it will all kick off again.
It ‘ll be artekkers ma’am. Some shit storm is brewing in North London and it’s not gonna be pretty. How do we appoint a man with no prior experience of managing a football team. Heck even the great pep G coached the barca thing before cutting his teeth at the top level. This is going to go south really fast. Hang on for their life it’s going to be a bumpy ride. Morning HH.
Adamant ☺
Goonster. 🙂
Arteta Knows Best…… not yet imho!
Morning all.
I wonder if there will be a press conference call made on Friday?
The Arsenal are pretty decent folk and recognise that there is a time and a place for the appointment of a new man. Wenger is to clear his office and desk on Thursday. A day for the cleaners to get in there and shake up all the spiders and discarded wish lists etc and then the new man can move straight in!
Or,
Given the speed at which things happen at the Arsenal, the Board will still be looking for some sap to sit in the coaches chair well into the month of August!
Azure skies here on the costa deal Trent! Lovely day.
Morning Adam. I was very much underwhelmed by Gary Neville’s article. What a plank!
Good to see the optimism flowing through your veins Goonster….
I find it interesting , not what he has said but what he hasn’t. I have had a problem with Wenger’s tactics for a long time , that’s coaching , but from a managerial point of view ,I think he did a good job. I have been reading the details of the deals for Mkhitarayn and Aubameyang and the vast amounts money involved and taking account of the only actual Arsenal supporter on the board Ken Friar’s comment last week that he was given a budget and was told to work within it. Why do you think he left one year early ?
Look at it this way having spent all of his time at the new stadium in austerity .Suddenly as he is about to leave , the board employs new people and amazingly find a vault of cash behind the chairman’s sofa. I don’t think we will hear the whole story straight away , but eventually we might find that it was not only the American influence but the banking sector of the board whose natural hesitation to spend held us back.
Rico, when look at the way that Man City ran away with the Premier League and will probably do so next season, can you really say that the EPL is that much different from Serie A…?
Love Island deserved the award btw, a brilliant piece of reality TV.
Not that I’ve ever seen it….
If Sly are quoting Ornstein then the Allegri story may have some legs. However, as we all know, Ornstein Knows Best! Once he has declared, publicly what is going on at the selection committee,vthen the truth will out! Until then all this nonsense is just like the transfer market.
And just a thought. I wonder if Wenger will ever write his book of fables. I guess he’s waiting until he retires….hahahahahahaha.
Afternoon Rico and All
After 22 years of earning big dosh,with
all expenses paid contract,and a degree in economics,
wouldn’t Arsene be better off buying his own club,In the
lower divisions,and show everyone how it’s done?
He could even choose the tea-bag’s.
A one off though Kev, in Italy, Spain, France etc, it’s usually a two way battle. Plus up t’north in the middle of winter just doesn’t happen over there..
Not knocking Allegri though, as it takes a special kind of guy to get to the CL Final twice.. Another thing, and I really don’t know the answer but are Juve one of the rich clubs?
Afternoon Fred. Has to be PG… lol
Potter, if that is the case re the money, why did Chips, or whoever it was tell the world the club could afford any player barring Messi and Ronaldo. Someone has to be telling lies somewhere…
I did not see that …….Rico.
Tips Fred.. 😉
Afternoon rico and all..
Gary Neville is an idiot. .enough said!
I would be very dissapointed if the club appoints Arteta. .I think it would be huge risk and would certainly likely backfire.
We are at a crossroad and we need experienced head to move us forward. .
I don’t think he is the right person to unite a devided supporters behind the club.
I don’t think he will be able to discipline big egos and lazy asses whom we have in abundance.
Arteta wasn’t a great captain and he is very wenger like when it comes to tough decisions.
He would probably try to make us play like city (that’s all his coaching experience ) albeit with a 2nd rate players and it will be like wenger trying to copy the Barca way all over again..
If the club can’t afford Allegri, they should seek to hire someone like Jardim Imo..
if Arteta is appointed, I would be happy to give him the benefit of the doubt for the first 10 games ?
On other note it was nice from the hudersfield crowd to aknowledge and cheer for AW in the 22nd minute.
Tuchel has 2 years at PSG. That’s one down.
I have often said that the board only told you what they want you to know and they often spoke with forked tongues.
Evening all and thanks Rico for another quality post.
I love the “Look I err”, I use it all the time when I impersonate ( Too good effect I may add 🙂 ) Wenger when talking to my Wenger worshipping chef mate , he thinks it`s funny or he may be laughing at me because he thinks it`s atrociously bad !…..hahaha
Cant wait for the World Cup to start and finish just as quick so the new season opens, I`m more excited by who our next manager might be than the WC !…………………………………
Was listening to Sky before and I`m sure they said something that the transfer window is being brought forward to open on the 17th of this month to be in line with everywhere else !……………………….if that is the case we may have a transfer window opening before we have a manager !…………………………….nothing changes then with us always a few steps behind !
Evening Kk and all. Thanks Lc..
Potter, the board and Wenger all strayed from the truth imo, said whatever suited their agenda no doubt.
Sharpish rico, only 13 weeks till the new season kicks off !
Till then we can sit back and watch the silly season unfold.
Good post Rico. The Neville parents must be proud, having produced TWO PLANKS. Quite an achievement. Mind you, believe their Dad is called Neville Neville. Could be wrong though.
Paddywhack, and a couple of 12 inch planks at that lol.
Can just hear at the Nevilles school: “Gary, what’s your Dad’s name”. “Neville”.
Yeah, but what’s his Name lol
Banfield, Peyton and Primorac following Wenger out of the exit isn’t a massive shock, but when Head of Conditioning (fitness) Darren Burgess relieves both Tony Colbert and Colin Lewin of their jobs you see that the shake up is going right to the heart of things, Johnson goes as well.
Shad Forsyth is safe but the rest of the medical staff have to apply again for their jobs.
So both the Coaching and Medical sides at London Colney are shaken up as well as recruitment, contracts, general football business, seems that Ivan is bringing in an entire new team?
Now all we need is a head coach…
Reading between the lines it looks as if Steve Bould may not fancy working for a manager younger than himself and it might also be the fact that he fancies doing the managers job himself, so he may wait to see if there’s any jobs on offer before he commits to Arsenal.
Lehman seems set to stay, Ljungberg back for the Academy with BFG, Gatting and Larriman looking likely to be moved on, the changes are going deep!
It all points to Arsene’s reluctance perhaps to shake things up himself, as Ferguson always did to keep it fresh?
Getting and Larriman are under investigation for bullying and are already suspended.
What next ????………………………..fcuking Gunnersaurus !………………………..brutal !
Do you reckon Gunnersaurus has his own changing room ?………………..probably a cave !……………..dimly lit and hit over the head by a enraged Arsene who just cant leave ,but who will help him with the at the back zipper ?
🙂
Morning you fine people, what a lovely sunny and warm morning it is too…
Morning Rico and all, the sun is out and the purge is under way..
Silva to Everton & Poch to leave Toots for Chelsea are this mornings mutterings..
Was watching Sky Sports news and they had a clip of Pep and his coaches/backroom team on stage in some sort of ceremony………………… Arteta wasn`t on the stage !
Right I`m off to Docs for Digital Rectoral Examination…………………thought you might like to know that whilst you eat your brekkies !…………………hahaha
Should change that to……………could not see Arteta on the stage, as he may have been in the toilet or having a cup of tea or maybe he was having a Digital Rectoral Examination aswell !.
Morning Bt, about time eh…
Lc, some things are best kept to one’s self….
New post up now.