The Gooner Forum

In an effort to clear up the site and return it to what it is for (talking about Arsenal playing football), please post all Board-related chat here.

(Mods - could this be made a sticky?)

To start off the debate, I will post my take on events, from what I understand to be the case.

Who holds the Power at the Emirates - the Board or Wenger?

Wenger, no doubt.

Wenger has improved the worth of the club several-fold since he arrived. The Board are shit scared of him leaving for two reasons - 1) he makes them a nice profit each year on a shoe-string, whilst keeping us competitive 2) without him, how much would they need to spend to keep us competitive. Who would we employ as manager? What if we fell out of the Champions League? To the Board, it doesn't even bear thinking about. Wenger is our Sir Alex Ferguson. In other words he is what is termed a "Mandoc" - a Company dominated by one man.

Have the Board over the last ten years mis-led us about the financial support available to the manager?

My understanding is that the situation changed because of Highbury. The idea was that we could continue to spend as we had done previously, as Highbury was to be ring-fenced (it was an SPV) and would be self-sufficient. As I've said before, a large pre-sale fell through, the Banks asked for the shorrt-fall to be covered, which came from the Football Club cash reserves. This meant the Club could not invest in the team until the flats had been sold. Since then, monies have been freed up, but Wenger appears to have chosen to invest monies on extending player contracts, rather than on transfer fees. He sees that in the present climate, we can't and won't compete with un-sustainable businesses such as Chelsea and Man City. I can see his point, but he also seems to have too much faith in mediocre players. This is Wenger's fault and not the Boards (IMHO).

Was the faith in youth and a constrained budget brought in by the problems with Highbury?

I think it came into place to counter Chelsea and Abramovich, not because of our own financial position. Wenger is an economist. He saw the way football was going earlier than most. Once we won the 2003-4 Title, the team was pretty much dis-assembled at will. Wenger from this point saw a self-sufficient model to be the way to go. The squad was too old and Wenger saw that a youth project would replace it. It has simply been stepped up since City were bought.

PLEASE KEEP ALL BOARD-RELATED CHAT HERE. IT IS RUINING THE REST OF THE FORUM....

The board are fantastic and doing a triffic job with a triffic attitude both on and off the field

Speaking of Martin, where is our friend from across the pond?

I refuse to question anything the board has done or has ever done, they are brilliant custodians of the club and i WILL NOT HAVE ANYONE SUGGEST ANYTHING DIFFERENT

By far the greatest board, the world has ever seen

YANKS OUT

Get the Uzbeks in!

"The Wonder of You" to be replaced by this.
It rocks.
Seriously, it's upbeat and has some great harmonies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phn0QrzBxFk

QuartzGooner wrote:Get the Uzbeks in!

"The Wonder of You" to be replaced by this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phn0QrzBxFk

i quite like that...

xDAVEYx wrote:

QuartzGooner wrote:Get the Uzbeks in!

"The Wonder of You" to be replaced by this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phn0QrzBxFk

i quite like that...

Yeah I just edited my post, it's a good tune.
Bit of world music is good by me.

QuartzGooner wrote:Get the Uzbeks in!

"The Wonder of You" to be replaced by this.
It rocks.
Seriously, it's upbeat and has some great harmonies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phn0QrzBxFk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vss96K16Lqs

frankbutcher wrote:In an effort to clear up the site and return it to what it is for (talking about Arsenal playing football), please post all Board-related chat here.

(Mods - could this be made a sticky?)

To start off the debate, I will post my take on events, from what I understand to be the case.

Who holds the Power at the Emirates - the Board or Wenger?

Wenger, no doubt.

Wenger has improved the worth of the club several-fold since he arrived. The Board are shit scared of him leaving for two reasons - 1) he makes them a nice profit each year on a shoe-string, whilst keeping us competitive 2) without him, how much would they need to spend to keep us competitive. Who would we employ as manager? What if we fell out of the Champions League? To the Board, it doesn't even bear thinking about. Wenger is our Sir Alex Ferguson. In other words he is what is termed a "Mandoc" - a Company dominated by one man.

Have the Board over the last ten years mis-led us about the financial support available to the manager?

My understanding is that the situation changed because of Highbury. The idea was that we could continue to spend as we had done previously, as Highbury was to be ring-fenced (it was an SPV) and would be self-sufficient. As I've said before, a large pre-sale fell through, the Banks asked for the shorrt-fall to be covered, which came from the Football Club cash reserves. This meant the Club could not invest in the team until the flats had been sold. Since then, monies have been freed up, but Wenger appears to have chosen to invest monies on extending player contracts, rather than on transfer fees. He sees that in the present climate, we can't and won't compete with un-sustainable businesses such as Chelsea and Man City. I can see his point, but he also seems to have too much faith in mediocre players. This is Wenger's fault and not the Boards (IMHO).

Was the faith in youth and a constrained budget brought in by the problems with Highbury?

I think it came into place to counter Chelsea and Abramovich, not because of our own financial position. Wenger is an economist. He saw the way football was going earlier than most. Once we won the 2003-4 Title, the team was pretty much dis-assembled at will. Wenger from this point saw a self-sufficient model to be the way to go. The squad was too old and Wenger saw that a youth project would replace it. It has simply been stepped up since City were bought.

PLEASE KEEP ALL BOARD-RELATED CHAT HERE. IT IS RUINING THE REST OF THE FORUM....

Very nice Although I wouldn't say we have mediocre players at all. And I don't think it would cause us any problems if we took a season or 2 out of the CL, as AW has a loyal bunch of players that wouldn't scarpa' at the first sign of trouble Very good post/thread nonetheless

frankbutcher wrote:

Keep the Arsenal British? Hahahahahahahahahah.

We have a French manager, players from all over the world, a board consisting of multi-national directors, a South African Chief Executive, an American Chief Commercial Officer, and our three major shareholders come from America, Uzbekistan and India.

Talk about shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.

QuartzGooner wrote:

frankbutcher wrote:

Keep the Arsenal British? Hahahahahahahahahah.

We have a French manager, players from all over the world, a board consisting of an American as well as British directors, and our three major shareholders come from America, Uzbekistan and India.

Talk about shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.

QuartzGooner wrote:

frankbutcher wrote:

Keep the Arsenal British? Hahahahahahahahahah.

We have a French manager, players from all over the world, a board consisting of an American as well as British directors, and our three major shareholders come from America, Uzbekistan and India.

Talk about shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.

Soorry Frank but no need for this - cheers all the same

1. I have opened plenty of threads of my own in the past will continue to do so when I feel a need to. As to your concerns about cross-pollination, let's call it, in recent times amade an effort to open sepoerate threads specifically designed to avoid the thread hijacking "nightmare" only to have them locked by moderators as repeat threads. Which given that these issues were being discussed in a specific thread left no alternative but to post my views in the original thread and be accused of course of thread hijacking. The bottom line is if by rules I cannot open a repeat htread out of consideration to the ishes of people in other threads then I have every right to post my views in the original thread andno one should be denied the right to post their views in the appropraite thread when that is the only option available to them. No one.

2. As I say I have opened plenty of threads and will continue doing so as it is appropraite. There is no point in a single thread on this matter as we would both agree they are numerous aspects to it and that certain of these arise at varying times and that is when these threads get opened for discussion.

3. I get your concern to a point. However at the same time what is the point of having a serious discussion about serious issues then limiting the scope of such discussion or the topics which may be addressed. It becomes rather like on Family Guy when Peter Joe Cleveland and Quagmire discuss which women they would in just ridiculous scenarios (afriad I couldn't find a Youtube clip - it's some funny shit).

I mean why not just open thread about when will we sign Messi Ronaldo and Robben because those scenarios are about as realistic as discussing some of these issues with considering the impact of the Board on them.

Sure I'd do Beyonce in a New York Minute. Does that give me reason to seriously discuss whether it would happen or how I could make it happen? How is it beneficial to have serious discussions about serious issues and who they might be solved if we don't want to discuss the problem in the first place?

I get where you're coming from but iut still makes no sense.

USMartin wrote:Soorry Frank but no need for this - cheers all the same

1. I have opened plenty of threads of my own in the past will continue to do so when I feel a need to. As to your concerns about cross-pollination, let's call it, in recent times amade an effort to open sepoerate threads specifically designed to avoid the thread hijacking "nightmare" only to have them locked by moderators as repeat threads. Which given that these issues were being discussed in a specific thread left no alternative but to post my views in the original thread and be accused of course of thread hijacking. The bottom line is if by rules I cannot open a repeat htread out of consideration to the ishes of people in other threads then I have every right to post my views in the original thread andno one should be denied the right to post their views in the appropraite thread when that is the only option available to them. No one.

2. As I say I have opened plenty of threads and will continue doing so as it is appropraite. There is no point in a single thread on this matter as we would both agree they are numerous aspects to it and that certain of these arise at varying times and that is when these threads get opened for discussion.

3. I get your concern to a point. However at the same time what is the point of having a serious discussion about serious issues then limiting the scope of such discussion or the topics which may be addressed. It becomes rather like on Family Guy when Peter Joe Cleveland and Quagmire discuss which women they would in just ridiculous scenarios (afriad I couldn't find a Youtube clip - it's some funny shit).

I mean why not just open thread about when will we sign Messi Ronaldo and Robben because those scenarios are about as realistic as discussing some of these issues with considering the impact of the Board on them.

Sure I'd do Beyonce in a New York Minute. Does that give me reason to seriously discuss whether it would happen or how I could make it happen? How is it beneficial to have serious discussions about serious issues and who they might be solved if we don't want to discuss the problem in the first place?

I get where you're coming from but iut still makes no sense.

I believe the board are a set of triffic lads with triffic attitudes doing a fantastic job.

USMartin wrote: Sure I'd do Beyonce in a New York Minute.

Oh yeah, I can see it now.

Corner of Club New York, Manhattan.

Middle aged Yankee somehow slips security and siddles up to Mrs Carter.

USM: Say babe, I know you're married, and pregnant, and all that stuff, but how about spending the night with good ole' Martin, I know how to work it?

BEYONCE: I'm a Southern girl, and we stay by our man, but he's overseas so maybe we can have a little fun. Do you like my ample booty?

USM: Never mind that, I'd rather tell you all about the Board of Arsenal Football Club. Do you know what Sir Samuel Hill-Wood did in 1920? Do you understand the imminency of the debt leveraged takeover and how it would ruin this club? Do you ? Do You?

BEYONCE: Err, wouldn't you rather watch me shake my booty?

USM: No. Not now. I am focussed on The Board. Sign my petition now. Sign it. Do it. I lust after your signature. Do it now, I insist! If you fail to sign you are disengenous, a liar, a whore, a low down dirty skank.

BEYONCE: SECURITY!!!!!!

An hour later.....

FOX News at Midnight with Caspar Milktoast.

"We have just received reports that the beaten body of an unidentified man has been found in an alley in the Marcy Projects, Brooklyn. Police are unaware whom it is but a tattoo saying "Sack the Board" is emblazoned across his stomach.
Any information please call Officer Dibble at 5th Precinct on 1-800-555-Coffee-n Donuts."