29 Aug 2017 11:54:08
After the mess of the weekend it is pretty clear that Wenger has lost the dressing room.

It struck me that the more responsibility wenger has taken on at the club the worse we have become. I'm not sure that he is as good as he thinks he is at running the full shop

Since David Dein left our recruitment has on the whole been poor. Wengers penny pinching tactics and failure to move with the times has been beyond frustrating. He seems to want to pay 2007 prices in 2017 and it's strangling our ability to compete. Historically (think late 90s and early 2000s) wenger said these are the players I want and Dein went and got them Sol Campbell being a perfect example

Secondly, he inherited a back 4 drilled to within an inch of their life on the art of defending. Yes he replaced them over the years but the likes of bould, Adams and Dixon would be leading there teammates to defend from the front. We also had more players that knew the art of defensive play such as Parlour, Gilberto etc who would lead on the pitch to keep a defensive shape. There is not a defensive bone in the bodies of our current midfield and attack

One possible overlooked exit was that of Pat Rice. Arsenes number 2 through all the successful years and also someone who used to take a lot of training sessions. He was not a yes man. If something was wrong he wouldn't be afraid to say his piece. Since he left in 2012 I have lost count of the spankings we have had away from home in the big games. Is that because Steve Bould is a yes man and or a terrible coach or is arsene just not giving him any responsibility. They certainly don't seem to get on like an assistant and manager do. You can't tell me that our squad in 2011/ 12 is better than the squad we had finishing last season and although we weren't challenging for the title then we looked at least liked we had a strategy, a game plan and some sort of coaching

Wengers ability is not in transfer dealings, tactics or coaching. Our more successful times have been when he hasn't had the responsibility for these things. Historically he has had a march on other teams with regards to finding diamonds in the rough but with the money now being pumped into the big clubs scouting networks he has even lost this aspect

So can any wengerites please explain what does this guy bring to the table to make him worth his reported 10 million a year?

1.) 29 Aug 2017
29 Aug 2017 11:59:19
Top post Suffolk.

2.) 29 Aug 2017
29 Aug 2017 12:17:53
I thought you would have been one who told us what he brings to the table Malaga. Lol.

3.) 29 Aug 2017
29 Aug 2017 12:35:48
Personally I think it is and has been a club wide problem from top to bottom.
If in 2009 after 5 years without a title challenge would we fans have accepted Arsene being sacked, no chance.
What about 2014 after 10 years of non premier league competitiveness? Absolutely out of the questionn
We have all played our part in Arsene being totally unaccountable beyond questioning until it all became far to late to do so.
We as a club from top to bottom helped make the problem and we all need to accept we all got it wrong not just the board or Arsene without our consent and support.

4.) 29 Aug 2017
29 Aug 2017 12:40:36
Good post, but Rice was equally subservient to Wenger and part of Wenger's methods is that staff do as he says and the moment they disagree with him they are out. Why do you think Gabriiel, Mustafi and Perez have or will be moved on? Rice was fortunate that we had some string characters at the club such as Adams who had beensuerbly drilled by George Graham and admitted that the defence organised itself how it wanted to without Wenger being consulted. As it worked Wenger sensibly left it alone. Can you imagine Adams, Keown etc, using Wenger's idiotic zonal system or playing a suicidallly high line and they would never have allowed players not to play their part in defensive duties. I recall Adan's admitting that he had Anelka by the throat after a poor match against, I think Middlesbrough, as Anelka didn't do his part defensively.
I believe the problems started with the departure of Dein and Fiszman, who Wenger respected and allowed to run the business side of the club. With the exception of the Ashley Cole deal, they generally performed well and even then they managed to prise Gallas, a top CB, from Chelsea, which was a coup at the time. Players didn't enter the last year of their contracts and they seemed good at signing the players Wenger wanted. The current negotiating team are dire.

5.) 29 Aug 2017
29 Aug 2017 12:56:53
Steve he doesn't even bring the salt and pepper to the table.

6.) 29 Aug 2017
29 Aug 2017 14:07:51
He's pushing it real good though Malaga!

7.) 29 Aug 2017
29 Aug 2017 16:21:14
He brings a wooden spoon to the table.