Skip to main content

In the name of God, go!

Ian Wright as a former Arsenal player has said that Arsene Wenger should not stay as manager of the club: Time to go

I have had a lot of time for Wenger and I want the top layer of English football to be competitive which means that Arsenal need to pose a consistent threat. This they have failed to do recently. In the Carabao Cup final they didn't seem to be trying at times.

Once Wenger was ahead of the curve in terms of innovations in football. The best of them were adopted by others and he is now behind the curve. Choosing the right time to go to preserve your reputation is an art: Sir Alex got it right. Of course, he built a succession of Manchester United teams.

Wenger has very few apparent interests outside football and he might not be that comfortable moving to, say, a French club. He has achieved a great deal for Arsenal, not least the move to the Emirates, which did have an impact on the team for a while.

Wenger has eighteen months left on his contract. There are changes behind the scene at Arsenal, a shift in the balance of power. But ultimately it is all down to the owner, 'Silent' Stan Kroenke who appears to be well disposed to the manager. The fans and Ian Wright can say what they like, he is the ultimate decision maker. Although I have a lot of time for Arsenal as a club, and hope that one day they will be a force in the Champions League, their fans do sometimes seem to have a sense of entitlement to silverware which can grate a little.

I just hope that Wenger can eventually leave with dignity because he has contributed a great deal to football.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Wolves get raw deal from FFP

  I used to see a lifelong Wolves fan for lunch once a month.   He was approaching ninety, but still went to games.   Sadly he passed away the other week. As football finance guru Kieran Maguire has noted, Wolves continue to be constrained by financial fair play rules.  Radio 4 this morning described them as this year's 'crisis club' and the pessimists have certainly been piling in. Martin Samuel wrote sympathetically in the Sunday Times yesterday, saying that the Premier League drives talent away with regulatory red tape: 'Why could Al-Hilal sign Neves? Because Wolves needed the money. And why did Wolves need the money? Because the club had to comply with an artificial construct known as financial fair play. So Wolves are going skint, yes? No. There is no suggestion that Wolves are in financial trouble, only that they are failing to meet the rigours of FFP. Wolves’ owners appear to have the money to run the club, and invest in the club, and in fact came up with a pow
Post a Comment
Read more

Gold standard ground boosts Tottenham's income

The gold standard in European football grounds is the Tottenham Hotspur stadium in north London, a £1bn construction project completed in 2019. Its impact on the club’s finances has become increasingly clear as the effects of the pandemic have faded. Previously, the average fan would spend less than £2 inside the ground on a typical match day, but now that figure is about £16, thanks to new facilities including the longest bar in Europe and an on-site microbrewery. Capacity has gone up from 36,000 at the club’s previous home of White Hart Lane to 62,000.  The new stadium — built on land adjacent to White Hart Lane — has opened the door to a broad range of other events that have helped to push commercial income up from €117mn in 2018 to €215mn in 2022. Last year, Tottenham hosted US singer Beyoncé for five nights on her global Renaissance tour, two NFL matches, as well as rugby games and heavyweight boxing bouts.  Money brought in from football has gone up too. Match day income is
Post a Comment
Read more

Charlton takeover approved

The long awaited takeover of Charlton Athletic by SE7 Partners from Thomas Sandgaard has been approved:  https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/se7-partners-obtain-efl-approval-for-charlton-athletic-takeover/ Charlton have had unhappy experiences with owners for over a decade, so how this works out will remain to be seen.  There is certainly potential there, but will it be realised? This interview with Charlie Methven gives detail not available elsewhere:  https://thecharltondossier.com/charlie-methven-on-the-record/
Post a Comment
Read more