In Arsene We Trust?

Arsene Wenger’s 16-year reign as Arsenal manager is at an all-time low and the steady decline of a previous powerhouse of English football has now reached crisis point.

Tough times for Wenger

In the space of four days Arsenal have been dumped out of the FA Cup by a mediocre Sunderland side and emphatically thrashed by AC Milan to all but end their hopes of progression in the Champions League. Sitting 17 point adrift of league leaders Manchester City they have little to play for and facing a seventh straight season without a trophy, some supporters are now suggesting Wenger’s time is up.

The Gazzetta dello Sport described Arsenal’s 4-0 thrashing by AC Milan in the San Siro, their heaviest ever European defeat,  as “Una delusione totale” which requires little translation. Ex-captain Patrick Viera was quick to defend his old boss, stating on Twitter, “There was a lack of leadership, you cannot blame only Arsene, the players must take some responsibility.”

Embarrassed in Milan

Not many expected Arsenal to win in a tough away fixture to a side that currently tops Serie A, but this was not just a loss. Wenger admitted, “The result is a disaster, although the season is not finished… We need to show something completely different on Saturday.”

There were many differences in the game on Saturday, the most noticeable being the quality of Arsenal’s opposition, but the outcome was the same. Granted they were unlucky at times, but in what former midfielder Emmanuel Petit classified as the worst season of Arsene Wenger’s career, he pinpointed their problems. “They’re playing like they don’t know what’s going on… Mentally they’re very weak.”

Arsenal hit rock bottom

Wenger claimed, “We had a lot of possession, didn’t create a lot…” His methods have been criticised in the past for promoting style over substance and Highbury hero Dennis Bergkamp was quick to acknowledge that “Sometimes you need more of a winning mentality than a passing mentality… I’m not sure if Arsenal have enough of that.”

Arsene Wenger, labelled a “miracle worker” by former vice-chairman David Dein, won the double with Arsenal in 1998 and 2002. He became the only manager ever to achieve an unbeaten season in the Premier League in 2004 and reached the Champions League Final in 2006.

Duo are so badly missed

This success was built around experienced players and big characters, who gave Arsenal a ruthless sense of drive and determination. Think Seaman, Adams, Keown, Viera, Petit, Henry and Bergkamp among others. Now compare this to a current Arsenal outfit, which, aside of Robin Van Persie, struggles to boast a single outright leader.

Wenger has become widely known for his failure to bring in big name signings and his inability to hold on to his top talents. This season Arsenal lost the services of two of their outstanding players in Cesc Fabregas and Sami Nasri who moved onwards and upwards to Barcelona and Manchester City respectively.

Speculation continues to surround the future of Van Persie, who is still yet to sign a new contract and if Arsenal fail to qualify for next season’s Champions League, they would surely be waving goodbye to the man who has single-handedly dragged them up to fourth in the league table.

Arsenal's only hope

Having signed five players in a frantic final 48 hours of the last transfer window, none of any notoriety, Arsenal fans have been left once again to wonder why Wenger, a Master of Economics, refuses to spend the money that chief executive Ivan Gazidis announces is available for transfers.

Petit stresses, “They have to spend money to get the big names.” But with the possibility of no Champions League football next year and the lack of willingness to offer lucrative contract deals such as in the case of Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United, Arsenal may be facing a dilemma of not being able to attract top class footballers.

To add insult to injury, Arsenal’s apparent decline appears to be coinciding in perfect unison with the rise and rise of bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Tottenham flying high

Third in the league, still in the FA Cup and playing the most attractive football in England, Harry Redknapp’s men are taking great delight in the shift of footballing fortune in North East London. 

In contrast to Arsenal, Spurs have been able to retain their best players in Gareth Bale and Luka Modric and bring in proven talent such as Rafael Van der Vaart and Emmanuel Adebayor. One of Europe’s hottest prospects Eden Hazard also recently expressed his desire to ply his trade at White Hart Lane.

Arsenal have won only five of their last ten Premier League matches and scoring only twice, they have conceded six goals in their last two competitive outings. With the next three fixtures lining them up against Tottenham, Liverpool and AC Milan, the outlook is bleak.

A team void of any confidence, have a manager in Wenger who openly admits, “It’s very difficult to say where it leaves us and what we will do.”

The glory days are a distant memory

Whilst many have lost faith in the man who brought such success to the club in his early years, there is no hiding behind the facts. Arsenal have finished in the top four of the Premier League in every single season since Wenger arrived in 1996. They have also been involved in the Champions League 14 years in a row under Wenger, despite having only 12 European ventures in total previous to his tenure.

Petit believes “Arsene is still the solution” and many fans maintain faith in a man who has done so much good for Arsenal Football Club, but it is impossible to ignore the doubt in the voices of Wenger’s followers as cries of “IN ARSENE WE TRUST” are replaced by murmours of “In Arsene we trust?”

Written by Dom Wallace

Red-Hot Spurs on Fire for Happy Harry

On a chilly winter evening in the capital, Tottenham reignited their title ambitions with another classy performance, which left a struggling Wigan side out in the cold at the foot of the table.

Gareth Bale continued to shine for Spurs with a neat chest and athletic volley into the Wigan net following an exquisite cross-field through ball from Luka Modric.

The nimble Croatian doubled the lead for the home side with an instinctive, turning half-volley from outside the box.

Bale celebrates first goal

The second half failed to wow the crowd, until Bale struck an individual effort into the far corner, before James McArthur squeezed in a deflected consolation for the visitors.

Wigan could and should have made the finish less comfortable for Spurs with Conor Sammon unable to convert a Ronnie Stam cross from six yards in the closing minutes.

Despite a few carless moments, Tottenham exhibited enough quality and belief to pick up their first victory in three league outings and showcase why they deserve to be a mere five points off the pace.

The opening half hour was, as expected, dictated by Harry Redknapp’s side, although two headed attempts by centre-back Younes Kaboul were all they had to show for their dominating of possession.

Wigan had glimpses of hope with Ronnie Stam delivering dangerously into the box and Victor Moses penetrating the nucleus of the Spurs backline, but an obvious lack of execution was all too evident.

As was always on the cards, Tottenham eventually broke the deadlock with a fantastic display of skill.

Modric eliminated The Latics’ defence with a pinpoint pass to Bale, who lost his man in the process of chesting the ball down to volley passed Al Habsi. The effortless finish complementing the preciseness of the assist.

A devastating duo

The sought-after Modric then demonstrated his own goal-scoring abilities, instinctively propelling a ricochet into the bottom corner with apparent ease.

Following an irresistible first half performance from Spurs, the Wigan contingent trundled off for half time refreshments with a sense of doom for the impending second half.

Despite a near miss shortly after the interval, courtesy of the head of Emmanuel Adebayor, the N17 faithful became impatient with Tottenham appearing content to sit on their lead.

However, Bale once again produced something from nothing whilst appearing to have his sight to goal obscured; he shifted onto his left in a flash and with minimal backlift, fired a rasping nail into the far corner of Wigan’s coffin.

With Roman Pavlyuchenko signing for Lokomotiv Moscow and Jermaine Defoe already sidelined, Cameron Lancaster was handed his Spurs debut after Adebayor joined Rafael Van der Vaart and Kyle Walker in limping off.

Probert misses lunge

Redknapp will therefore be especially thankful his free transfer of Louis Saha was successful. He said of the 33-year-old Frenchman, "I like Louis. He is bright, sharp, got good movement and I think he'll do well for us."

The only controversial incident involved Benoit Assou-Ekotto who floored Franco Di Santo with a reckless lunge, catching the forward high up the shin, yet the incident went apparently unnoticed by referee Lee Probert, who took no action against the defender.

Roberto Martinez was incensed, "I think it was a definite red card and we are very fortunate he's only got a minor injury. A red card would have given us more momentum.”

Wigan got a deserved consolation for their efforts after Moses freed McArthur whose deflected chip looped over Brad Friedel.

They should have added a second moments from time, with Stam causing problems down Tottenham’s left flank and must take heart from their second half performance if they are to drag themselves up, out of the drop zone.

Martinez admitted, "I do think we deserved a lot more but in the next fifteen games we need to perform in the manner we did in the second half."

This was a welcome victory for Spurs and Redknapp who has been in court on charges of tax evasion recently. He joked, "I've been sitting down all week. I kept dancing around like a two-year-old! It was nice to get on my feet again. The fans were great, I appreciated it.”

Redknapp in high spirits

In a positively jovial mood, the so-called wheeler dealer of the football world reminded all Arsenal fans, “We're thirteen points ahead of Arsenal now, it's a nice lead.”

The Tottenham manager was quick to pour praise on Gareth Bale who had another dazzling performance. Luka Modric was also outstanding and Redknapp will know just how crucial that pairing will be for the success of the club, not only this campaign, but for seasons to come.

Bale and Modric form part of what is currently considered the best midfield in the English Premier League, but in a strange irony, many believe that how well they perform and therefore how much success they bring themselves at Tottenham, may dictate their desires to remain at the club.

Sitting third, just five points behind Manchester City and still in the FA Cup, Spurs fans need not panic just yet, but the summer is a long way off.

Written by Dom Wallace