WEDNESDAY night was
probably the lowest I have felt as an Arsenal fan for a good number
of years, certainly since we were embarrassed by Birmingham City in
2011.
After a very limp
performance against Manchester United on Sunday, I'd hoped the
players would roar back and shove the critics words down their
throats with a dominant performance against relegation strugglers.
Instead it was another
of 'that'll do' performances where Arsenal went 1-0 up and reacted
with horror when the opposition dared to make a game of it. It's a
performance we have got used to sadly in recent years and usually
explained away by the manager as 'tiredness' or something else.
In other years we
probably didn't do enough to win the title, but this year with
Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City bobbing along, it
looked the golden chance to win the Premier League.
Instead Arsenal lie
somewhat marooned in third, closer to dropping out of the top four
than reaching the summit, occupied by Leicester City. A team let's
remember who were 'doomed' to relegation the Christmas before
last....
The more damning
statistic was Arsenal have recorded just THREE Premier League wins
since Christmas or more to the point, three victories since we beat
Manchester City at the Emirates and established ourselves as
favorites.
Instead of pushing on
and doing all we can to seal the title, we nervously stepped into the
New Year. To the outsiders, of which many of us are because the club
won't have anything said anti Arsene, it looks like they simply don't
want to win trophies bigger than the FA Cup.
Do I blame Wenger and
want him out? Not entirely, the players are just as culpable as the
manager, after all Arsene Wenger can't score goals or keep them out!
But my problem with
Wenger is the lack of desire and the willingness to be challenged,
where are the voices in the dressing room calling people out for
slacking, challenging the manager?
Answer? Out of the
club, Wenger rules and if you don't like it you can look for another
club to play for. Gone are the days of Adams, Keown, Vieira, Henry,
Lehmann, Campbell – big players who would drag the team to glory.
The players know if
they don't deliver on the pitch there will be an excuse from the
manager and most have slipped into their comfy trousers to pocket the
salaries on offer.
Any other club would
have shipped Diaby out with his injury record, would be questioning
why Jack Wilshere troubles surgeons more than midfielders, would have
told Theo Walcott to PROVE why he should be played through the
middle.
Instead the squad is a
mish-mash of bored players who have settled for the level they are at
and the high quality ones who want to win trophies.
While I applaud
Leicester for their efforts this year, they shouldn't be top of the
league, Arsenal should be dominating this league this season. That
they aren't is a chronic failure on behalf of the manager and the
players.
What should be done?
Well in my opinion all reasonable fans should be questioning Wenger's
continued presence at the club. Not the sack but a departure fitting
the status as the man who revived our club.
He deserves our
gratitude and respect but even the best sometimes need to be told
when to leave the stage. Arsene's legacy is in danger of being
unpicked now, as Gooners we need to ensure it doesn't happen.
If he does depart then
I hope the slackers in that dressing room get a rude awakening, a
jolt into life.
After all 'Victoria
Concordia Crescit' does mean 'Victory grows through Harmony'.
There has been a
distinct lack of that in and around the club this season!
