Before the game yesterday vs. Aston Villa, people were already beginning to slate Wenger off and question his ability to manage Arsenal anymore, considering some of his statements, decisions and policies. And then after the game the stance was just the same, except the aggressiveness and arguments were heightened by about one-thousand percent! And to be honest, rightly so. It was a shambolic game that humiliated all those associated with Arsenal and Wenger deserves to have questions raised over him.

Firstly I must point out, I don’t think it is all Wenger fault, I believe the negativity as well as the fact that the board is controlling the progress of the club rather than the management team is another reason behind the decline of this football club. However it cannot go without saying that Wenger too has something to do with it and he is possibly as equally responsible as the players are for the failure.

For too long now, Arsenal fans have been lied to. It’s been several seasons where we have been promised progress, yet every year we believe them and fall into the trap. Again this year after securing the much needed champions league spot, Ivan Gazidis was adamant we were going to go out of our way to spend all the money that was available and improve our team to a much higher standard. Yet we were lied to and as of this moment we haven’t spent a single penny.

His transfer policy must be questioned and this is arguably his biggest downfall, however there are other aspects of this manager many of us used to label ‘Le Prof’ that have led to questions being raised over his head. Where is his plan B? Does he have a form of action to take if things are not going the way we want them to in a game? Why does Wenger only observe from the team dugout, rather than step up to the side-lines like his counterparts and push the team on or give out some instructions. The man that speaks several languages, has unbelievable knowledge in footballing tactics and overall a fantastic reputation, is going into decline, just like the club is, however like I said it’s not all his fault.

The thing that made me question him most yesterday was his decisions during the game. With 30 minutes to go, I believe we were 2-1 down. There was still hope for a draw and even a win but we weren’t playing particularly well. Having already used 2 of our subs, we had 1 more remaining and every single person in that stadium knew it had to be Podolski, but everyone was also realistically thinking he is going to bring the inexperienced Sanogo on for his debut.

Luckily he didn’t, but he also didn’t bring Podolski on! I noticed on 20 minutes that Podolski was told to stop warming up and put his shirt on, understanding that he was ready to come on, however it wasn’t until the final minutes of the game that the substitution was made, in which time Podolski had no chance to make an impact on the game! I don’t have a clue what is going wrong with Arsenal or Arsene Wenger for that matter but one thing is clear if we don’t make some changes, this is going to be a very uncomfortable season that finally sees the nail in the coffin.

5 thoughts on “Villa game highlights the need for BIG changes at Arsenal

  1. As an ex-pat Arsenal fan livin’ here in the USA, don’t get as much chance to see ’em play as when I did standin’ in the North Bank(except on Fox Soccer Channel). However, apart from what appeared to me to be apathy on the part of several players and Wenger in terms of tactical control, what also struck me, and several viewers this side of the pond was this: some of the absolute WORST refereeing we’ve seen on a British soccer field for over 35 years! A red card for a foul that wasn’t even a foul; brutal and obviously intentional dirty play by Villa players that didn’t even warrant free kicks.

    Yes our play was apathetic, but the officiating…….

  2. It has been confirmed from a reliable source that Wenger is a big time FOOTBALL GAMBLER. Are you guys surprised with what he and Gazids have been doing with the team for years now? He has been gambling millions each year with the team. The bet on ground now according to the source is not to buy any player but use this set of boys to achieve top 4 spot. I hope it backfires this time on his face. He should be investigated for match fixing too.

  3. The team is lightweight in terms of physical strength, quality, and mental strength.

    There is not mental backbone to this team and I understand why. The team is being run poorly. There is no effective leadership on or off the pitch. Hence, the players do not have that extra, internally, to maintain composure when a seemingly lesser team parks the bus and kicks them for 90 minutes.

    The injuries are another point of concern re. the club’s decline. It feels like it’s been at least 4-6 years running that we have significant injury problems with too many of our players. This speaks to team culture, IMO, more than years on end of bad luck.

    Sack Wenger. Sell the mediocrity that Wenger hopelessly persists with. Start with Ramsey. Then sell Podolski, Mertesacker, and Sagna. Bring in players of the 1st tier. I’m sick of 2nd tier players running around chasing 4th place!

  4. ”Firstly I must point out, I don’t think it is all Wenger fault, I believe the negativity as well as the fact that the board is controlling the progress of the club rather than the management team is another reason behind the decline of this football club.”

    But where do you get this information? Gazadis was very clearly trying to state, unequivocally almost, that the money was there to spend and it was down to wenger! By wenger’s own admission he has a very great say in the transfers that are made at the club, and it has been common knowledge for years that wenger is the main man in charge of the club.

    Ok, there is prob some truth to that, but there is also prob a lot of hyperbole. But that is my point, non of us know what is going on, who is in charge of what, who answers to who etc … So how can you say something like the ‘board are controlling the progress’ ?

    If we are being lied to (and we are being lied to) than wenger is just as culpable as the board and owner.

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