I don't know who you're addressing there, because either it's a figment of your imagination, somebody else - or you've completely misread what I was getting at. In fact since I started I've barely said anything about AW in regards to the issues we've had - mostly all I've said is that we've had them, and the reasons behind them might be more complex than just one person.armchair wrote:Wonder whose fault the 8-2 was? Or the 4-4? Or the embarrassing capitulations against so called lesser teams before Bouldy which cost us and turned many fans against himlong before this season.
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Cant have been Wenger obviously.
We're far from the only club in the regular top half of the PL to have had the odd embarrassing defeat in recent seasons - e.g City stuffing United 6-1, us spanking Spurs 5-0, us spanking Spurs 5-2 after going 2-0 down - plus if you go back to 1999 there was Chelsea (pre-Abramovich) humiliating United 5-0 after the latter had just done the treble. Setting that aside, I didn't say that Wenger was blameless for any of it. I raised the *possibility* - not certainty - that bringing Bould in as assistant manager in the last season or so was a move to have someone with defensive clout alongside AW - which if true would indicate that AW is not the dictatorial egotist that some paint him as.
Did we lead the league for 4 months in the last 10 years? I'm not counting my chickens yet, but if we get the FA Cup, that's silverware too - which we also haven't had in that period of time. How is that a regression? I simply don't think we were going to be strong enough to get the PL title this season (and said so in December), but as in December I thought that this season would be a proving ground for a shot at the title in the coming season.Gunner Rob wrote:We finished 4th place last season and we will finish 4th this season, but we also led the league for 4 months this season. So if we finish in 4th place then how can that be called progress? I call it regression.
Change how? He gets stick for being weak defensively, we now have Bouldy (who knows a thing or two about defence) as assistant manager. He gets stick for not playing defensively and using counters, yet he does just that against the Spuds and Liverpool (in the FA Cup) this season. Ten years without silverware? Barring disaster, we're one match away from breaking that - and it's not an excuse, but an *indisputable fact* that from around 2002 up until the most recent transfer period, our transfer spending policy was dictated by the board, not AW. The whole "dossier" thing is a non-issue as far as I'm concerned - Jose is supposedly the king of tactical analysis, and all that effort has him a whopping *three points* above us in the PL at the time of writing. The striker question is a bit of a sore point, but I still maintain that it will probably be better in the long run to buy someone decent who will stick around in time for next season than it would have been to waste money on a short-term fix for this season (someone mentioned Berbatov, who has scored all of 9 league goals for Monaco this season and managed a stonking 5 league goals for Fulham last year). On that point, I doubt AW's off to Brazil just to work on his tan.Wenger is now 64, he will not change and has already admitted that we won't buy much this summer.
I thank you for the welcoming words (I've got to say, even if I'm saying unpopular things for some - I've been pretty shocked by the bile and negativity from some quarters) - and as for what's giving me confidence? Well, during our 10 years of tribulation, some of the worst knocks we've taken have been from key players upping sticks and leaving - including Henry, Fabregas and RVP. While Cesc going home was a given, those departures coming when they did had a destabilising effect on the following seasons for us. Since RVP walked two years ago, we haven't had anyone of that calibre leaving (at least no-one whose role can't be covered reasonably well). Walcott could have gone - he's staying. Ramsey and Wilshere are committed to stay - in fact the only thing, in his own words, that could induce Wilshere to leave would be if Wenger went. Poldi seems to be staying in spite of the fact that he's angling for more CF play and isn't likely to get it. After a shaky start and injury, Özil has found his groove - and the interplay between him, Ramsey and the strikers in the last few matches has been frequently sublime - and a tantalising look at what might be to come.
Topping the league for four months is something we haven't managed in recent times, and while we missed out on the title this season - disappointing but unsurprising - the title will still be there for the taking next year. And to recap - Man U have bigger issues than Moyes, and I don't think next year will be a triumphant return to dominance for them. Liverpool will be playing CL next year, and that's going to put significant extra workload on their squad. City are currently in hot water with UEFA, so it'll be interesting to see if anything comes of that (one area in which I totally agree with AW is that clubs found guilty of breaching fair-play rules should be penalised) and Chelsea are on the cusp of a significant "ageing player" problem.
So that's why I'm hopeful for next year.
Who? How many? Can you provide a link or links?QuartzGooner wrote:5.) As for dossiers, my criticisms are relevant because players leave Arsenal feeling they have not been prepared by Wenger.
[EDIT : If you're talking about Cesc : http://www.givemesport.com/445336-cesc- ... er-tribute
(Shame that came before Stamford Bridge, but you can't have everything......the Barcelona ace was quoted by the Daily Mail.
"I just want to say congratulations. You made such a big impact on so many players' careers, especially on mine. I owe you everything."
Fabregas has made no secret of the fact that he still follows Arsenal's results closely since returning to Barcelona, and will remain a fan of his old club for the rest of his life.
)]
He's now started inventing his own competitions. 
Classic. Why didnt I think of that one?
