Arsenal: A Club in Turmoil
By Hector Clements
New year, same Arsenal. It's become an all too familiar and accurate saying for Gunners fans over the last few seasons, and this year has been no different. The recent 2-1 defeat to Brighton, a side who are playing their first season in England’s top flight for decades saw the North London clubs tally of League defeats rise to 10, their highest in 7 years and saw yet more fans turning to the ‘Wenger Out’ brigade. England’s current longest serving manager has been under intense pressure for years now, in fact it's easy to overlook that if his team had failed to turn around a two-goal deficit to lowly Hull City in the 2014 FA Cup Final, then he might not even be standing on the Emirates touchline now.
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Aaron Ramsey's late FA Cup winner in 2014 looked to be an upturn in fortunes for Arsenal and Wenger, but results and performances have not significantly improved since.
But is the lack of major success that has slowly progressed into a drastic downfall of one of English footballs biggest clubs all down to the manager? Of course not. After all, the task of providing positive results is all down to the eleven players put on the pitch each week, and the majority of them have simply not been good enough. This inevitably leads to questions on Wenger’s decisions in the transfer market and some of the signings he has made. Arsenal fans have always been able to watch a team capable of competing with anybody on their day and playing breath-taking football, but it seems now they are getting further and further away from even that.
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The defensive side of the team has been questioned for years. It seems Wenger would rather fill the midfield and central defence with neat, technically adapt players, but the lack of a leader and commanding figure that The Invincibles had in the likes of Patrick Vieira and Sol Campbell is there for all to see.
Take Granit Xhaka for example. The Swiss midfielder came to the Premier League with a high reputation as one of the Bundesliga’s most promising young stars capable of filling the void in defensive midfield. But after just a month or so of watching him play, it was clear that whilst being a ‘nice’ footballer, he didn’t have the positional awareness and discipline the team so badly needs.
Add in the fact that Chelsea managed to snap up N’golo Kante for the same amount of money as Xhaka the summer after finishing well below their London counterparts in 10th, it only adds to the frustration felt by so many around Emirates Stadium right now.
Where the Gunners once had the guile and leadership of Patrick Vieira, they now have the unpredictable, hot-headed Granit Xhaka.
Although three FA Cup Trophies out of the last 4 years is an achievement that cannot be disregarded, the same questions are still being asked. Can Arsenal compete with teams that match their ability with steel and grit? Can they go to the home of a major rival and grind out a result? And for the most part, the answer is no. Just look at this seasons match at Anfield where they were thumped 4-0 by a side that simply looked a class above when it came to work rate and commitment, two of the things that should never be questioned at a club as big as The Gunners.
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​As for the recent Carabao Cup Final against Manchester City, It was always going to be a big ask coming up against one of the world’s most exciting and inform teams, but the least you expect is players giving it their all, covering every blade of grass, leaving everything on the pitch. Gary Neville couldn’t have put it any better when he summed up the performances of Ramsey and Xhaka “Walking on a football pitch at Wembley, giving up, spineless. All a fan wants to see is a player running, as fast as he can, as hard as he can”. And it all comes back to one man. Arsene Wenger. If he can’t get maximum effort out of his players for a North London derby, let alone a Cup Final then where does he go from here?
August's 4-0 defeat at Anfield signified the club's recent stagnation under Wenger, and an inability to compete against top-level opposition.
Alexis Sanchez has become the latest in a line of big name players to depart The Emirates for new shores and signify the ultimate failure and lack of major success that is associated with the now Europa League side. What’s most sickening about this is when former star man Robin Van Persie was sold to the Red Devils in 2012, the fans were promised just a year later that this would never happen again, and that they would soon have a team capable of competing with the likes of Bayern Munich.
Star man Alexis Sanchez recently became the latest in a long running line of talent to depart North London for new horizons.
Whilst the January arrivals of Pierre Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan are high profile and by no means the dealings of a club in desperate trouble, Arsenal are not building on what they had. They are instead replacing outgoing quality with players they feel can achieve the same heights. But the main problem is still a lack of winning mentality. Where there was once a Tony Adams, there is now Shkodran Mustafi who is better remembered for game changing mistakes than tackles. For whatever reason, Mr Wenger is simply not getting the best out of his players and as the saying goes, ‘when the players aren’t playing for the manager, he’s got to go’.
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For the North London outfit, the road back to the top looks a long and tough one. The challenge is to get them playing as a team, looking more organised and, although this should never be in question at any club…. motivated. The fear is still there that a change of manager won’t necessarily result in a change in fortunes, but sometimes it takes two steps back to take one step forwards.
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Manchester United are a prime example of that. The departure of Ferguson was always going to be a testing time and ‘The Moyes Years’ aren’t looked back on fondly by any Red Devils fan, but slowly they have come out of that transitional period and are beginning to look like a force to be reckoned with once again.
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​It’s time for Arsenal, with the financial structure now in a strong position with the stadium debt paid off, to reach new levels. This is a club that must be competing with the world’s best, not strolling oh so predictably to defeat in a Cup Final. It may be a rebuilding process, but the catalyst for change must start with the departure of Wenger, albeit a man who has given the club so much.
Arsenal fans will be hoping that the signing of Gabonese Forward Pierre Emerick Aubameyang will replace the outgoing goals and flair of Alexis Sanchez.