Is it time for Wenger to change his philosophy?
As I watched Arsenal surprisingly lose the English League Cup final to Birmingham on Sunday, I remembered an old tale from Hans Christen Andersen called “The Emperor’s New Clothes.”
You may know about this story from the legendary Danish writer which illustrates how intellectual vanity can lead someone into believing in something that everyone else can see is not true.
In my perspective, Arsene Wenger is guilty of this behavior, and let me be the one to point out and say, “but he isn’t wearing anything thing at all, he’s naked!”
Enough is enough. I can imagine this is what most Arsenal fans around the world are saying at the moment.
As the Gunners contemplate a sixth straight year without any silverware, surely they have to question the methods of a man who has lived off his past glories for too long. A man who must see that he needs to change his philosophy or risk leaving the Emirates Stadium through the back door.
In the final minute at Wembley, when 20-year-old goalkeeper Wojicech Szczesny and 25-year-old central defender Laurent Koscielny made a mess of a loose ball, leading to Obafemi Martins' winning goal, I thought to myself: “Once again, kids lose out to men.”
In Sunday’s final, the average age of Arsenal’s back five (goalkeeper and four defenders) was 24.4 years. How many teams around the world have won anything with a defense that young? Not many. This is the main reason why Arsenal haven’t won anything since 2005 and the reason they won’t win anything again this season.
In my view, the finger of blame has got to be pointed at Wenger. Is he a good coach? Yes. Should he be respected? Yes. But he has now proven all too often that his obsession for young promising players has not translated into titles. How much longer are Arsenal going to put up with this trophy drought? The board should take a stand.
Recently I had the chance to speak with Patrick Vieira about his former club. He told me, during a short interview, that he felt sorry for Arsenal because they were missing a couple of key ingredients.
He admitted they needed some more experience. Personally, I thought Wenger should have taken his former midfield talisman back to London instead of letting him go north to Manchester City.
The Frenchman would have been a great addition to Arsenal’s squad. Just like many other experienced central midfielders like Anatoliy Tymoschuk, Mahamadou Diarra or Mark van Bommel would have been.
Or even better, a proven international center-back like Matthew Upson, Richard Dunne or Fernando Meira. All players who were available over the last couple of seasons for a reasonable price and who would have added mettle and muscle to a back line often too easy to beat.
Another position Wenger should have strengthened is goalkeeper. Surely he would have seen by now that as talented as his young keepers are, they are not experienced enough to lead a young defense.
Surely he would have seen that spending two or three million pounds on someone like Mark Schwarzer would have been a good investment. But no, apparently he didn’t, and the result is once again, the same. So close, but no cigar.
I know many of you are thinking that I am overreacting and that the recent victory over Barcelona proves that Wenger is on the right track. I don’t agree.
There is no doubt that this team has many talented individuals and they will shine at times like they did against the Spanish giants. However, consistency wins titles, and this team cannot beat Barcelona and Chelsea and then lose to the likes of Braga and Birmingham if they are to be serious contenders.
One final word about the 2011 League Cup champions. With limited resources, Birmingham fought valiantly and deserved their victory on Sunday.
Ben Foster was colossal in goal and veterans like Lee Bowyer, Stephen Carr and Barry Ferguson were extremely influential - just the kind of players the Gunners desperately need.
So I say Mr. Wenger, the expensive clothes you say you are wearing don’t exist. Your team isn’t winning and your philosophy isn’t paying off. It’s time for a change.
Mr. pinto should stick to talking about the things he knows about as he clearly knows sod all about Arsenal.
We don't have any "expensive clothes", that is the whole point about Arsenal. Our biggest outlay on a transfer has been for Andrei Arshavin who cost £15m... that is less than Manchester United paid for Anderson! and Double what they paid for Berbatov and Rio Ferdinand all those moons ago. And if Wenger's ideas aren't working whose ideas should Arsenal go for... Mourinho's? How is he doing at Real Madrid despite the squillions spent on players he's inherited? Or may be we should follow the Chelsea and manCity route and get our selves into debt like Leeds and Portsmouth?
Mr. Pinto, for your information, Arsenal built a world class stadium in the heart of one of most expensive cities in the world and that costs money.. the biggest single private development in Europe without government aid. The club doesn't have a sugar daddy throwing money at it and despite spending about 1/20th of what ManUtd and Chelsea have spent in the last 6 years (yes a 20th) we have competed and we have been able to compete because of Wenger.
There's nothing worse than a journalist that won't do his basic homework... We lost to Birmingham and we shouldn't have lost .. their goalkeeper was MOtM for crying out loud! Let me remind you that we are second in the EPL and are taking a lead to Barcelona in the ECL ...by no manner or means does that represent failure and given what we've spent as a club what we have done is nothing short of miraculous.
Get your facts straight.
Pedro has got it right. Arsenal FC is a competitive premier league club, not a youth academy. Wenger should mix it up: talented youth with experience. If he thought Thiery Hnery and Anelka were young boys when they were winning for the club, he knows well that these were not ordinary young men, but rather exceptional world class talents. May be Wenger is obssessed with winnning with boys he minted, but it should not be at the expense of the club and the fans who are not exepected to wait forever for a dream that my not even bocome reality. Yes, Wenger should chamge his ways.
You are spot on with your comment. Arsene got it too easy and he thinks his job is secured, granted he got Arsenal to move to new stadium but he has been shrewd in spending money on experienced players.
It is time for Wenger to go and get a fresh face, would love to have Viera as a successor to Wenger with Berkamp to be assistant since he is afraid to fly, I would see Berkamp as first team coach but for flying reason I suggest Viera as the head coach.
Last time I checked, Arsenal is making money. How many other teams can say that? At the end of the day each team is a business and if they aren't profitable then they are failing.
Would you rather Wenger go out and buy some overpriced players that have had their value driven up due to big spending by Man City and other club backed by wealthy playboys? A little more experience is one thing, and I will still blame that on injury since Verhamlen and Cesc were unavailable. I also feel that Gallas was not properly replaced.
The other part of it, which I would say is the more important part, is leadership. Matthew Upson, Richard Dunne or Fernando Meira don't provide that because they aren't leaders.
If Arsenal need to focus on anything it will be how to correctly replace Cesc and RVP who will most likely not last more than another season.
Birmingham only had one thing to fight for this season, so they fought to the death for it and won. Foster was awesome, congrats to him on a great game. But Arsenal still has other trophies to fight for. No worries.
absolutely true, sad but true.
you are on the spot i am tired supporting ARSENAL they should buy a good goalkeepe and some serious defenders like WILLIAM GALLAS which Wenger let go and now he is eyeing for the Liverpool goal keeper who is no different and one of the reasons why Liverpool are down.
Grw up Wenger the whole world can sense your mistakes, where was your great midfield players WILSHERE and all?
Way to miss the point, Mr Pinto – your article must have been written a la va vite after the loss, because you have clearly missed the true question this loss poses; what will this do for the rest of the season?
That's the question ever Gunners fan was asking yesterday, and is still asking today. Is this it? the usual post transfer window collapse?
We're stretched too thin, on too many fronts. FA Cup, Carling Cup, Champion's League and EPL. Not to mention some international games for some of our players. With this busy a schedule, and the usual high amount of injuries we seem to always have, is it really a shock to see the team starting to falter?
You blame the coach for sticking to a philosophy which seemingly does not win – and yet, here we were in 4 different competitions doing fairly well. Finals of the CC, in the 5th round of the FA Cup, in the round of 16 of the CL after having beat Barca, and 2nd in the EPL. It doesn't seem indicative of a losing team.
All we are seeing are symptoms of an over-exerted and overly tired group of players than of a poor philosophy. Perhaps the answer is just intentionally dropping out of the FA Cup/Carling Cup and focusing more on the EPL and CL. Less can sometimes be more.
For someone like Pedro Pinto who could barely distinguish between a leather football and a watermelon, his article reads well.
However, 'Peter the Paint' should perhaps devote his 'grandiose' ideas to covering cooking competitions, instead – places where his lack of taste would not be noticed.
How can you say this if you are aware of how well Arsenal have been performing for the last 10 years? It's a terrible idea to blame a coach's entire philosophy for a blunder between a defender and his keeper.
Arsenal are consistently in the top 4 of the premiership, they are competitive in the Champion's League, and they regularly do well in the FA and Carling cups. You would be better served citing the naivety of specific Arsenal players.
I must say that I dissagree with you completely Pedro. I am an ardent gooner and also keen follower of world sport on CNN. I love the work you and your colleagues do in reporting sports news, but on this occasion your analysis is flawed. Ex-Arsenal players and managers are all part of the 'world media' now and in many cases are myopic in their analysis. No club has a divine right to winning. I will rather wait 50 more years to win with our current styles and personnel that succumb to the 'hype' and quick fix ideas most people propose. True gooners know that it is only a matter of time. If we can wait, surely the rest of the world can as well 😉
i honestly agree with you. there is something that he is doing wrong yet he has this nice team. he shouls get them a good leader to lead the defence and another up front.
Pedro,
I couldnt agree with you more. It seems wenger has now come to personify the saying " insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result".
If he were employed on the basis of making solely profits for the club, then he was a right hire, however, the fan base world over expects far more than this- It's about the silver ware stupid !! This man probably thinks he runs a farm where you breed thorough bred puppies for sale.
Mr. Wenger sucks
For a long time (since 2005) Arsenal have not received any titles yet. Their fans is waiting for a new trophy in this season because it is very difficult to compete with MU for Barclays Premier League. Birmingham is a very easy rival for the gunners but they can not catch the chance. Congratulating for Birmingham.
In my opinion, MU will beat Chelsea in tomorrow night match and soon become the new winner of Premier League. Arsenal is only the runner-up in this season.
some arsenal fans are dump and just wont accept fact... what makes you think you'll go past man united and win the EPL or beat Barcelona in the second leg and go past the 5th round of the FA... You guys better wake up.
Another article from someone who not only can not be an Arsenal fan but who also believes that a "New York Yankee like" strategy is the only way in which trophies will be won. I am not saying that parts of this article are not true, the lack of silverware in the past years is a testament to the underachieving of Arsenal. However how can one ask for Wenger to change his style when nearly three weeks ago they did what no one thought they could do and they beat Barcelona, a team who most argue is the best in the world. In past years teams have feared and respected Barcelona because of their incredible talent and managers have had to play defensively in order to have a shot a winning, current european cup champions Inter Milan know all about soaking up the pressure and hitting Barcelona on the counter. Wenger said in a pre-match conference that the only way to that Arsenal would be able to win would be if they " won it their way". And they did. They came out want to play open and attacking football and it worked. Defeating Chelsea is no large feat these days, it maybe true that Arsenal have struggled against them but the team full of million dollar men who are judged to be more experienced are not even in the top four. This most recent fumble no doubt is a cause for concern but not about Wenger's coaching ability or his style of play. It boils down to one slip that cost them the game. Plain and simple. I do not want to get into this fantasy that bringing in more experienced players mean titles will come easier. It is simply not true. If experienced players are better under pressure then explain Ashley Cole's penalty miss in the FA cup against Everton or John Terry's in the Champions league a few years back. Penalties are a different case but if someone like Jack Wilshere can cope with playing against a team like Barcelona and play outstandingly then I don't understand why all of the sudden one slip up means that Wenger needs to bend to the pressure of all critics and start importing experience. Consistency is key to win titles and cups but being lucky is also part of it and that is why Birmingham won the match (there are other factors as well such as a goalie who put the team on his back but it was nothing but luck for them that they were gifted a goal with time running out). Wenger is a campion of tradition and wining his way is the way it has to be. If he changes his philosophy, which I do not think will happen, then what does it say about the character of a club? Or of Arsene for that matter? It would almost certainly be self-destructive. Young players at the club would lose confidence in both themselves and in their manager. No excuses can be made for not winning the trophy but to call out Wenger on his style and philosophy is nothing short of outrageous.
To begin with, I am a staunch Arsenal, and Wenger supporter. That being said, I do agree with much of the commentary. You simply cannot have 10 artists at the same time. You also need those willing to buy the paint, set up the easels, and cleanup afterwards. Van Brommel would have been a great short term solution. We are sorely lacking the tough defenders who punish forwards who stray into their area. We do not have the size in the back to match up with many of the opposing forwards in the EPL, let alone the Champions League. I know going against some of those responses above are akin to speaking out against the church, but look at this with your mind, not your heart. Quite honestly, we simply do not have enough players to match the number of fixtures required today in modern football. The most glaring issue as well is the constant leg problems with so many of Arsenals stars. Conditioning has to begin to be questioned as well. Look at some of the players who have had recurring muscle problems over and over, and you see they didn't have this in the leagues they came from. Rosicky, Van Persie, Nasri are first to come to mind. Bottom line is we need an experinced keeper, and God knows we have been linked with half of Europe since before the World Cup, but still nothing. Wenger needs to either spend the money to buy a few quality veterans to add to the squad, and if not, then please stop issuing false statements t the start of each season that we want to win as many competitions as possible. The latter cannot be achieved without paying the price, but we did pay the price Sunday.
I fully agree with Pedro.
I am sick and tired of turning up for a match only to be disappointed when it really matters. For the guy screaming bloody murder for Pedro, listen Guv. I am not paying to watch beautiful football that does not deliver.
Yesterday, it was typical Arsenal of late, they score only spectacular goals and couldn't do anything in between. The back four were a joke! Arsene should have put in Almunia at least.
He cant keep on experimenting and expect that the best players will stay around. Nasri has already mentioned he may be off in the Summer as well as hopefully Fabregas (the circus has gone for too long) and then we will hear the old song about give youth a chance. If we don't win anything this year and Arsene still stays on as a manager, it will the worst news for the club.
The current best team in the world is Barcelona and they have a similar policy to what Arsene is currently applying in Arsenal, i beg to disagree with the fact that a young team cant win trophies, what will you say of the Ajax class of '95 that conquered Europe defeating world champions in the final, that is a classic example of youth triumphing over age.
Fine the Arsenal boys tend to lose it when it matters most but you have to consider the fact that Arsenal is just recovering from building a stadium and they have to be frugal in their spending.
But that said, Wenger needs to bring in some experience hands to bolster the squad, not necessarily expensive signings, but a couple of experienced players that can make the difference when push comes to shove.
Pedro, CNN might be trying to improve on sports section, but it does harm if the contribution remains mediocre! I do not know who gets experience by not playing and learning! Further, it would be better to have listened or interviewed Wenger before putting up such a piece and then borrowing statements from players and other columnists! He explained clearly his policy. Cesc is 23 yrs and what he did in world cup is all about confidence in him from Wenger! If we want to wait to field him when he is 30 yrs and claim that is experience, check on Italy and England in the world cup and compare with Germany and champions spain! Just get your stuff right and be cogent in your arguments, it makes the column attractive! If it is full of unworthy write-ups, of course you know what transpires! This arsenal team, will do well, the foundations are right and the club will move forward. If you win by throwing money around the world like governments did on bailouts, try looking at the history of Leeds and recently Portsmouth! If that is too hard, you out to have written to the world about the Financial rules by UEFA. Try a little harder!
Oh ye of little faith – no need to turn on the man who has done so much for Arsenal. We can wait to win – I was at the match yesterday and was bitterly disappointed but I am not now going to be a Man United fan just to get the silverware. Calm down Pedro mate – we will dancing soon. Either that or I'll have to beat the children.
@ Dramaqueen. I agree with you that Arsenal needed to focus by dropping off some competitions. But it is not wise to drop it at the finals. The best way to exit and conserve your energy is to drop during the preliminaries. You can't squander the energy only to get to the final and now say oh... I need to get out...... I don't need it anymore.
It is a very painful way to exit a competition if you ask me but they still have hope of silverware this season if this loss will not affect their morale. Thy are still strong on EPL and CL.
The loss of the carling cup though unfortunate hardly calls for a change in what the footballing community deems a massive success. Wenger has overseen the stadium transfer, the invincibles, brought young talent, remained in the top 4, still contend for 3 trophies and received coach of the decade. Barcelona triumph one week is hailed, and the next 2 weeks blasphemed, Look at liverpool and chelsea! but its interesting to note how short your memory of football is or even understanding of the game is, when Wenger retires he will be missed though id put money on a trophy at the emirates before that happens. credit to birmingham, good match but thats football.
Mr Wenger has brought great consistency to Arsenal.. im´e sure he and his Board of Dir... know whats needed ..... sometimes systems and ideas take time to evolve ..... they have lacked a little luck maybe.. but all in all one can only say he has done a fantastic job !
he has spent less than anyone else on players and is more successful than most.....personally i think we should wait until the season is over before we have this discussion.. other wise the proverbial sentence " you will have to eat your words " will be used... in effect Mr Pinto should apologize to Mr Wenger if Arsenal do go on to win something this season !
Sad Wenger didn't win but hey Pedro, what do you think about monetization of football? I support Wenger because he does not spend much but achieves results in a certain sense.
“Once again, kids lose out to men.” I want to say the same as Pedro Pinto. Mr Wenger's philosophy on making a team is not for the fans but team owner for saving financial affair. He should change things!
Gunners 4rever, wenger is a true professor of soccer ideology. Gunners Knocking barca out of champions league will make Pedro pinto cry like baby with foolish analysis after the 8th of this month.
This article just goes to prove the old football proverb, that those not involved always seems to know what needs to be done
as a soccer fan , everyone knows that if u wanna win a trophy u have to have a strong backbone(goalie, center back, midfielder , and striker). Gunners couldnt solve the goalie and center back problem for many years. i like wenger and his philosophy but instead of squillacci he could have got a better player. there is plenty of young and talented players. when arsenal solve goalie and center back problem they will be one of the best contender of the EPL and CL.
thanks
lets wait till d end of d season.but i think we miss cesc in dat game
Here we go again, Arsenal fans, always behind their coach like a tail behind a mouse. There is no coach in the world that is doing what the risk-no-sacking Arsene is doing at the Emirates, and that is why he gets result that others wouldn't get.
Maybe it's high time we created a 'Beautiful and Young League' where the likes of Arsenal can get to be rewarded handsomely for the romantic football they exhibit-that is if Barcelona don't exist anyway.
So sad, that some football fans won't ever get it. "Arsenal is doing well every season, even when we don't spend much". Wonder if 'top four' is a trophy-able position, or if 'finalists' and not 'champions' have got trophy parade in the club's city. Fact is your shortcut seems working until such an error that led to the wining goal comes to the fore.
Too bad, Gunners' fans will always see it as 'one off' even in the chain of many-offs, but believe me it is a one-off of a 'many-offs' coach-Arsene Wenger.
Emperors new clothes ....what a great idea! And it fits.
Wenger does suffer from myopia....and he will not change under any circumstances, unless it is FORCED upon him.
I believe that at an Arsenal Board meeting years ago, the 10 year plan was to stay in the top 4, make the Champions league every year, pay for the new stadium and any thing else is a bonus. This was the criteria under which Wenger was employed and to which he agreed.
By that criteria he is successful. Mission accomplished.
You can only change by changing.
If you were the one of the worlds best midfielders who was offered the chance to play in the worlds best club team, in yr native country in yr native town would you stay with a team of underachievers? No nor would I, and nor will Cesc!
In early June when the smoke has cleared and Arsenal have won nothing Wenger will trott out the same old cliches again.........He will still have his job.........We will still be waiting for his team to "come of age".......and the papers will be full of The defenders who we are about to buy etc etc etc.........
Maybe we ought to go the Tunsian, Egyptian, way.....REVOLT!!!!!
I totally agree with you dre! Some Arsenal fans are as blind as their coach. Nobody says its a bad philosophy. He just needs to put a lil more experience and they'll start winning trophies!
I can see your point of view ... BUT you miss the point altogether.
At the end of the day football is about the whole package not just trophies. Arsenal is not in debt ...
they play some of the worlds most beautiful football ...
and a meager six years is nothing to panic about.
Wenger´s strategy is not at fault ...
his strategy is what makes Arsenal one of the the most exiting teams in the world.
Hit the nail on the head. I have one word for Wenger's approach..Insanity – defined as taking the same action(s) while expecting a different result.
James you obviously dont know what you are talking about, you spent 1/20th i won't argue but where did that get u, no where apparently. Arsenal has a lead against barcelona, but with the current weakend team, are u optimistic about your chances in camp nou, let save that for another day, does man u have a sugar daddy, NO!. They spend money to win trophies, the same goes for bacelona, chelsea, real madrid. It is a risk you have to take, fortunes favours the brave, 4 point lead with the injuries piling up i think soon a loss is around the corner because the effect of this loss will bear down on the young inexperienced players, that seems to me like the whole squad, so dont be surprised by the next results. On a final note, Home is where the heart is, i think this applies to fabregas
Pinto, naked truth thats what you have served us.
Thanks
james...get your facts right..wake up
I totally i agreed with u Pedro. Anyway, all Arsenal faithful might not agreed but it's true...Am not worried nor concern about wenger or Arsenal board, fine they are getting their business going in the expense of thier players.. But my concerns is about those players .. what would be their achievement at the end?.. "I was a professional footballer but i never won any tittle"..i guess that would be the headline after their carrier if they are not careful....
the unfortunate thing for Arsenal is having fans like james above who are already very satisfied with the last 6 years' results. and there are many of them from all the blogs you read. even the Arsenal board is like this. and this hurts. personally, i'm not sure if the board will ever fire Wenger, as it seems they are very pleased with the way the checkbook is being managed. their concern and priorities are making money for the club (or themselves), more than winning trophies for the club or fans. Wenger is their man. and they can buy time as long as they have fans like james. they will change only if Arsenal fans don't buy the tickets (so no money), or go to the streets to boycott (just like what we've seen in Egypt and elsewhere!).
and one more thing: Wenger will never ever buy a star as he has too much ego. he himself is an autocrat so he wants total obedience and respect from all his players and staff. and he can only get that from kid players! once the players turn to star status and show signs of not listening, he will sell them. and that's fine with the Arsenal board as they've earned profits from the trades!
Arsenal will never win anything under him, and even if they do, it will only be a one-off. not like barcelona, manu, chelsea, etc., teams that can produce results in a more consistent way. Arsenal will never be a big club under Wenger and the existing board. period. and that's very sad for fans like me.
My fellow gooners have said it all. Arsene is spending money wisely in a mad world of football. We want to win trophies and we shall do so very soon. I am proud of my coach and his achievements since he joined Arsenal.
Mancity have spent over 200 million but are not top of the league.
Chelsea spent 75 million in a day but are 5th.
Barcelona are the best team in the world but lost at the Emirates to kids.
Man U are the league leaders for now with debts of over 700 million. Is that sustainable in the long run? You tell me.
Madrid has a player that cost 80 million but are 8 points behind Barcelona.
Kaka cost 50 million but has been a colossal waste since going to madrid.
Ibrahimovic cost almost same as Ronaldo but left the building early. But hey! he's a leader.
We buy Schwarzer for 2 million and lose and Pinto will accuse us of playing a grand daddy in the pitch.
Its not easy to play a team with a goalkeeper and 10 defenders. Ask Madrid and they will say the same even with their experiences and costly 'men'.
Birmingham won. Congratulations to them. We have not won since 2005 but they have not won since 1963 and the world did not cease for their supporters. They kept the faith.
Wenger is human and stubborn and we can be annoyed at him sometimes but we true Gunners believe in him and we know it is only a matter of time. WE ARE WILLING TO WAIT. BELIEVE ME, WE ARE WILLING TO WAIT.
I have seen Arsenal without Cesc Fabregas, they are an average team that can barely beat Stoke and lose to Birmingham. I'm a Gunners' fan but Wenger's philosophy isn't about winning trophies, it's about making profits and keeping the board happy.
Everyone knows Arsenal weekest point is defence and Goalkeeping, since last year. You would assume a good manager, who wants a trophy will spend some money to strengthen the defence, but heck no. It's not about making the squad stronger, it's simply about keeping the profits to the board.
Jude is absolutely right; "If he were employed on the basis of making solely profits for the club, then he was a right hire". He is, and will remain as such because this philosophy isn't about trophy, but about the business of breeding young players to sell for profit.
And to us, the fans; we'll just eat our hearts out.
Is this the 21st century version of Alan Hansen's "You'll never win anything with kids"? That was an equally silly knee jerk reaction spoken about Manchester United in the mid- 1990's just before they started winning everything in sight...Arsenal lost at the weekend because of two things, one calamitous defensive mistake and their inability to turn total domination of possession into goals. It had nothing to do with age. The "youngsters" didn't crack under pressure, they just didn't deliver on the day while Birmingham dug in and got a stroke of luck. In an ideal world Arsenal would buy a high quality central defender, a real goal poacher; and a natural leader, but it doesn't matter how old they are when they arrive. Messi is 23 for goodness sake, should Guardiola leave him out of the Barca team just because of the date on his birth certificate? Wenger's philosophy makes economic sense, and is gradually bearing fruit on the field too. Most teams would kill to be in Arsenal's position, vying for 3 titles and a runner-up in a 4th. Trophies will come with the patience people like you obviously lack. And, let's face it, the "kids" have plenty of time don't they?
i thought u were giving an educated but opinionated article,but then you just blew it away at the end when you said arsenal need players like Carr and Bowyer! Arsenal has the best talent in English football and it will pay off sooner or later...and the incident of yesterday could happen to anyone regardless of their experience..and am more than confident that we will come back to Wembley this year and go back home with a smile
Mr Wenger doesn’t like challenge, in other word he wants only to manage low profile players. Imagine if he has to spend £80 – 100 millions on player and he doesn’t win any trophy for that season!!!
In my opinion, if he bring mature or experience player to the team, it will take a couple years to get consistence with their performance, I mean they can’t come and adopt the style game… then a couple season without trophy!!!
I HOPE HE IS A NICE COACH WITH THE RIGHT PHILOSOPHY,
WHICH FOLLOW THE SAME OFFENSIVE AND SYMPHONIC TYPE OF
ENTERTAINING FOOT BALL LIKE BARCELONA F.C ,
AND I THINK HE DID NOT DO HARED ENOUGH TO MAKE HIS PHILOSOPHY ALL THIS YEARS .
DANIEL TESHOME
LOCATION ADDIS ABABA ,ETHIOPIA
Arsenal is still the best Club in the World! I proud of my club.
Long live Arsenal!
Arsenal beat Barsa on 10 good last minutes and the referee.... for most fo that game the Spanish team swallowed Arsenal wholly.
Don't see them passing the second leg at all
I have been an Arsenal fan for many years. My reason for liking Arsenal was the philosophy to the emphasis Wenger places on younger players. But since the last four years, i have noted that Arsene Wenger is not taking a corrective action. This is more obvioius when very strong attackers from other premier league teams basically beat Arsenal repeatdly.
With all due respect, as pedro said, Arsene Wenger is too bling to see that his strategy is not working. Even if they win the premier league or the European Championship, it will just be a one time even.
In my opinion, Wenger can still keep the most part of his philosophy by including some key, strong, experienced defenders.
Good work Pedro, for saying what many people feel needs to be said but ...
Boring! Arsenal is overrated anyway.
When the storm of life hit you so hard,the though keep going.seems like all things are impossible,a castle built in the air.That's what bring out the spark of life from every dead wood.I affirmatively believe we have what it takes to write our name in gold this season.so how about you fella sit on your couch,and watch as we make a resurgent statement with Barcelona.
????????
This is crazy! How can Arsenal loose a very crucial game like that.It was the mistake of Wenger himself.This so called professor is overshadowed with bright ideas that does not work.He should invest heavily on mature players and stop depending on this young kids who cannot deliver.We the fans are interested on the positive results but not beautiful game.If this drought for trophy persists,then i think its time Wenger to be killed out of Emirates Stadium.
i would rather be an arsenal than be a chelsea or mancity. At the end of the day this is entertainment buisness. and i must confess Arsenal with arsene wenger has given us that. So far as arsene wener keeps doing that he will never be sacked even in your dreams. Any hint of him leaving the club and u will see the amount of bigs clubs that will come begging for him. Arsene wenger i must say is any clubs dream coach be it real Madrid or man utd.What Arsene wenger has done with the meager funds he uses is what some other coaches have done and have found themselves and there team in the championship league, relegation zone and bottom half of the table. So my good friend Pedro Pinto and some others whom have commented on this article should please get smart and stop allowing there emotions to get the better of them.
Arsenal is a good club but the coach need to be more intellectual,not emotion. Barcelona F.C makes use of emotion and intellect which give you the result we see today.
A. Wenger in intellectually LAZY.
Pls mr professor, am really ashame to be an arsenal fan. We need more experinced players in our team.
honestly arsene must change his philosophy towards sticking with his so called talented young gunners,i could not eat after the game on sunday because of my anger towards the players.the match proves that without cesc,they cannot win a game.its time wenger make a move and save arsenals drought of trophies by buying experienced players to help our team.
time for Arsenal to change Manager?
hi Pedro,
I have never ever interested in any kind of journo opinion like this one as I find them absolutely useless but now I had enough.
so just a couple of questions:
1. – have you any idea how much does it cost to pay Vieira week in week out? is it bigger than that of Fabregas for playing a game in a month or less?
2. – don't you think it is a little premature to say that Arsenal will not win any silverware this year given they are still standing in 3 competitions?
3. – given the fact that Barcelona lost to Hercules, Sevilla, Betis and win against Real can they be called inconsistent like Arsenal?
4. – if you have ever played any level of football don't you think that Szcezny is not to blame for that goal as Koscielny should have kicked the ball away in any case?
5. Do you think that Fabregas is a world class player? Do you think that he became a class act due to the fact that he started to play for the big team at an early age? Don't you think if Fabregas deserved to be there then than Szcezny (whom I considered far more talented than Almunia, Fabiansky, Foster, Green, etc... at the same age and at the same level as Joe Hart or even the mighty Iker Casillas!) deserves the same?
6. Don't you think that a decent Arsenal supporter can understand that getting into the top5 most lucrative club in the last 15 years, staying there and building a new stadium in the meantime (not to mention: thanks to Wenger!) requires financial sacrifice?
7. Don't you believe in that if an Arsenal supporter has been waiting for six years for a trophy then he/she can afford 1,2 or 3 more?
8. Do you believe me that if a team with an average age of 23 doesn't win anything out of 4 competitons I do not care?
8. Have you ever had any result when criticising a manager? I mean has any of them ever changed its opinion or philosophy or anything? cause you can play with the readers by 'generating opinions' here but if the answer is 'no' than what you do is absolutely useless.
IMO the real question is: can they win the EPL or the CL this year?
cause losing the other three and winning one of these two would show this young team will be next to the Invincibles or reaches the level of the mighty Barcelona in the forthcoming years...
if not then Arsenal will just be an average team which is a joy to watch week in week out.
hope you are not offended. maybe my English is not good enough to say the same more politely, however, this whole stuff reminds me of the old saying in my country:
Arsene Wenger obviously is a good coach but it is only a mad man that will do a particular thing the same way over and over and expect a different result.Most times it pains me that I am an Arsenal fan.PLEASase Mr Wenger spend money and buy experienced players
Comment #1 right at the top – James you are bang on the money. The only thing I woul add is I think Wenger is fully aware he could do with a bit of experience. He tried to bring in Mark Schwarzer at the start of the year and almost every transfer window he has talked about either bringing in a center back or a holding midfielder. Either the players aren't out there or the upper management doesn't want to cough up the dollars for them. Neither is his fault. And it's made harder when your club has a youth policy and won't sign players 29 and over to anything more than a 1 year contract – hardly a destination I'd want to go if I was an ageing veteran looking to secure my financial future. And who's policy is this? Not Arsene's thats for sure!
point is - as long as wenger is not losing money for the club. He'll still at the helm.
The thing about Arsenal is that they always try to walk it in... 🙂
I agree with Pedro. Here's what Wenger should do, scrap his youth policy and bring in some experience. Jens Lehmann, you're retired not dead, get yourself back between the Arsenal sticks where you belong. Tony Adams, stop this nonsensical coaching stint in Azerbaijan and put some heart in our the defence along with Steve Bould, don't let 92 years of combined experienced go to waste. Kenny Sansom, you gave up too early, reconsider son, you're only 52. Pat Rice, you're wasting your time assisting Wenger. You've got 61 years of know how, so strap on your boots and use it. Vieira, you can't get a game for City, but we need your youthful exuberance, so get yourself down to North London pronto. George Graham, come for a stroll at the Emirates. Liam Brady, we've got no artistry, (apart from Fabregas, Wilshere and Nasri), give it another shot, Chippy, why don't you? Anders Limpar, we need the speed of a Swede, Walcott's too slow. Ian Wright, forget that TV lark, it's goals we need not ratings. And Thierry Henry, stop being a plastic Yank and get thee across the Atlantic. That should do it. Combined age 526. Happy Pinto?
It is inappropriate to blame Wenger he is a very good managers with the best management skills, consider his budget in comparison with other premiership clubs, Arsenal is number 2.
Consider Chelsea having older player averaging more than 30 years they have conceded more goals than others.
He is one of the Best manager leave him alone.
A word is enough for the wise. Is there anyway we could convey this message to Mr. Wenger? He should leave the past and face reality, don't be surprise that 3000BC with same idea and philosophy equals no silverware. ...................................................................................Thank you Pinto
Go on Mr. Wenger...Let others get the trophies!!!
Gunner will beat Barcelona again!!
Mister Pedro you could not have been more right. ARSENAL equals TRAINING GROUND (in the words of our great left back Patrice Evra) I don't know if there is a language anywhere in the world where no silverware in six years translate into succes.Wenger needs to stop walking around with no clothes. It's not funny anymore, it's sad. For the record (like the awesome Roy Keane ounce said) Wenger buys already 'minted' young players, next to none of his young tslents have come from his youth academy. Instead he paoches them from youth academies like the Barca academy in La Masia. This year he is unlikely to win anything again,there is a 'tradition of implosion'until they stop that, those boys will forever be losers, bridesmaids, and an unfulfilled promise.The Barca victory was impresive, but it means little. Who loses a 4 nil lead,they have done it before against Tottenham,realy now.So Wenger believing he will win 4 trophies this season, is as funny as walking around with no clothes convinced that you are dressed.
im not used to write a lot like you guys. But theres a lot of things in soccer that you should have in mind.
1- Be a champ is a matter of winning championships, not building stadiums.
2- Soccer games are 90 minutes long and you should play it till the end.
3- Remember, you dont need millions to have good players in your team, you need 11 warriors to PLAY like they were kids but take the game seriously as their jobs. Soccer is for fun.
4- great teams have older players in key positions at the field. Arsenal havent. Thats true. Examples: AC millan, ManU, Porto,
cya
james February 28th, 2011 1:46 pm ET
Hear, hear!!!
It hurts me SO damn much to say this... but you are right. UPTO the point where you say that his philosophy needs to change. "Change" is a strong word, I would say that it needs a little tweaking. But other than that you are spot on. We definitely need a few more experienced players at the back. Sol Campbell was awesome for this reason last year.
WELL SAID PEDRO. WENGER SHOULD DO A RE-THINK. NO MATTER HOW FAR YOU HAVE GONE , REALISING IT IS THE WRONG PATH, LOGIC DEMANDS YOU MAY A U-TURN! PLEASE WENGER ITS TIME TO MAKE A U-TURN.
Ishaku Musa
Zaria
Nigeria
To say that Arsenal are a bad team is (wrong) to say they are the best team it is (wrong) again, 6 years no trophies but competed in almost all competitions, now is good football about winning? If yes then show it, to lose against birmingham which I believe are the most disgusting team in EPL is hard to swallow for an Arsenal fan.. The mistake by the 2nd division French rookie and the young Pole is a clear sign of Wenger's repeated mistakes! Fans love trophies, they are not interested in the way the Arsenal board does business. I am an Arsenal fan but is a shame to lose a final like that on sunday! A real shame! Barca will chop Arsenal off at the back 4, I believe it was a fiasco Arsenal got away with but I do not see a repeat at Camp Noe..I see RVPN, Nasri and Cesk all leaving soon if Arsenal fails to land anything this season which in my mind sense that this is gonna be a 7th empty tear for us fans! If you are a business analyst and don't like football then Arsenal are the real deal to look at..
Pedro, this article is why YOU will always be a sports journalist and Wenger will be a manager.
'Nuff said
you americans don knw nothin abt football, so you can just shut up.... stick to baseball old chap!
And btw, why was it surprising that Arsenal lost to Birmingham? Have you seen Birmingham play in the EPL? Did you see how Birmingham played in the final?
Yeah.... that's what I thought. You watch without really seeing, which kinda proves my point why you'll always be a sports journalist.
I agree with Pedro!! Wenger is very good- no doubt and Arsenal is making money BUT all the fans need is some respect. And that only comes with winning trophies. I sincerely hope Wenger is listening.
To all those who forget that we are "The Invincibles" kindly stop supporting Arsenal as you were never a true fan. You support your team through good and bad times. We are all gutted by the result of the Carling Cup but it does not mean I have any less respect for Arsene Wenger. Only time and history will show what an impact he has made on this club and how much we will miss him when he goes!
As much as I hate arsene I would hate to see them relegated, because then there would be no team left for me to loath.
Strange, Arsenal was in the CC final but where were ManU, ManC, Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool...? Some believe that Arsene has changed is way in CC but they do not understand that it is the Arsenal squad that is so skilled and experienced compared to earlier. Arsenal is now reaping the benefits of previous years of blooding the younger players in the CC.
Weak defence? In the Premlier League (EPL), Arsenal has 27 goals against, ManU and ManC 25 and Chelsea 22. Tottenham has 31... Does this mean that compared to Chelsea, both Manchester teams have a weak backline? What about Tottenham? They REALLY need to buy some multi-million defender.
Arsene Wenger's preferred starting XI cost less than Chelsea's latest toy, Fernando Torres.
In the EPL, Arsenal is currently 4 points off ManU. ManU still have away games to Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, ... in fact, they have more away games than home games and look at the points ManU have gathered on the road – not that impressive. Arsenal in comparison have one away game against the big teams and more home games than away games. It is not unrealistic that by Sunday, Arsenal will top the EPL.
A lie doesn't become true even if it is frequently repeated. Arsenal is doing very well this year, so far arguably best of all English teams.
Bravo Pedro. this is probably one of your best articles. once again Arsenal have showed that ambition is not on their path, the game against Birmingham reminds me something that will never happen to teams such as Chelsea and Man United. silver wear from 2005 and yet still they played as if they have been winning trophies. a school of thought might tell you Arsenal are only concentrating on the game as Barcelona.... am telling you guys.....the scores is not going to be good.
“Never underestimate your opponent.You lose that amount of heart and care that you need to win and waste it by playing around and thinking that just because they weren’t the best team, that they couldn’t beat you. You learn from losing, it’s what makes a team. Always do your best in practice…It will show in the game.” Wenger needs to buy a better defense players to avoid losing games.
alot of the Arsenal funs have missed the point in that what Pinto is talking about is winning trophies not being competitive or making profits, i do not think people support Arsenal because they are profitable,thats good but supporters need victories resulting into trophies.
yeah wenger needs to change his style of play.Arsenal needs experienced players.
Pedro Pinto is my man any day, intelligent, factual and blunt. Arsenal disappoints when it matters most. Fans and followers all over the globe have this obsession for Arsenal that we are unhappy for another season of drought. Arsene is good, no doubt. But he needs a mix of the old and young, experience and exuberance. Arsene, you have answers to this drought if read and digest Pedro's analysis. That you are a good Manager of men and materials is not in doubt. The greatness of a football club is not in the beauty of its stadium, good P & L result, smooth-flowing football but in the number of silverware. Sir Alex @ 70 wants to break records. Arsene, read Pedro's article over and over and you will be come a better Manager hopefully from next season.
Mr Pinto is a Manchester United fan, why should CNN allow him to give opinions at the first place? He will never be sincere about his comments.
Arsenal are still in 3 wonderful competitions and Mr Pinto has ruled us out, Just by himself, cos he is a journalist...
Please Mr Pinto, Pay attention to your job as a sport journalist and don't give biased opinion anymore or you can simply wear a Manchester United Jersey whenever you make these comments.
Thanks and I know you too will change your philosophy
Hey Pinto,
I bet you are either frustrated or a dowdy opposition fan brewing a fantasy coup!
Dear Pinto,
I agree with your point but beg to differ on its analysis.
Truthfully, if Arsenal lifted the Carling Cup, could you have written this article?
Lets look at facts with a history and a long range focus. Clinchy was the only man on the team named the invisibles. This means that in four short years Wenger has new 22 faces at Arsenal who can still be 2nd on the League, into a Carling Cup final albeit the loss and well on course on FA and European Champions league.
A poor philosophy can not get you this kind of transformation.
However, i agree with you and Mourinho, babys cant win anything, men do. Lets advise the professor to get more steel in the goal, in the midfield and get some one like Kerim Benzama to fire in those Thierry Henry kind of goals. Right now its a team of great midfielders only.
I have so much respect 4 Professor Arsene Wenger & footballing philosophy that he has instilled at both Highbury /Emirates since arrived in 1996.I thought Arsenal were terribly unlucky against Birmingham in the Carling cup at Wembley .I still tip them to win the EPL crown though they werw very lucky to beat mighty BARCA 2-1 in the UCL at the Emirates..Wenger is a football encyclopedia /Philosopher who continues to practise financial prudence at the club hence thats why Arsenal continue a healthy financial balancesheet .Indeed Wenger must do everything possible to end the 6 year Silverware drought.There is certainly need 4 Professor Wenger to dip in & bring reinforcements in the form of a goalkeeper & central defender .Wenger `s CV is very impressive & impeccable no wonder why the Aristocratic Real Madrid came knocking at his door 4 his revered signature.
Greetings Pedro,
I Loved your story!
'Leave Arsenal; leave philosophy!' (my message to Arsene Wenger)
It has been said that Arsenal is one of the superb football teams over globe, it will never be so long as the damn philosophy is not relinquished yet. In my opinion, Arsenal is withdrawing its deposited old reputation with players that are kid enough to play. Yes, football is not totally managing and collecting money out of; it is also worrying about the blue faces of the fans lefted as five years losers. It really disappoints fans that are ever eager to see Cups in their hand.
Wenger has to recover from his over estimation and self-delusion of vanquishing all teams with Kinder Garten though he is blinded by it. I wish he could but, the point is, he can't. It is really disappointing.
Above and over, he must leave the club as soon and much as possible before the crazy fans do.
Thank you,
truly arsenal have lost but I think it is possible for the team to get it right with the current players all they need is to focus. they have paid a price and the world would soon see the cost of the price they paid. they all need to focus and play with a fighting and entertaining spiriting only then can the world see that nothing is truly impossible to those that believe. I am a fan but I see it wrong for me to side any team so I always say let the best team win.
WHAT WOULD Mr. PEDRO PINTO AND OTHER CRITICS HAVE SAID IF ARSENAL HAD WON THE CARLING CUP, (LIKED THEY LOOKED SET TO DO MANY TIMES IN THE 2nd HALF).
QUITE THE OPPOSITE I CAN ASSURE YOU.
Arsenal will continue to be my team
I don’t think Wenger is a good coach. To me the players control him rather he controlling them. Arshavin, Bendtner and Rosicky et al messes about in the pitch sometimes aimlessly and waywardly with no regards to the outcome of the game whatsoever. They are mostly rewarded by extended time on the pitch until things are beyond repairs before they are substituted.
What about the behavior of Diaby that resulted in the 4:0 lead giveaway against Newcastle? The irony is that that was not even the first time an Arsenal player lost his wit during a match.
Another disturbing fact is the nonchalant behavior of the players during finals – take the Arsenal vs ManU games in the CL for example; whilst the ManU boys were focused and determined to progress to the next level the Arsenal players were as hopeless as ever – they were mostly spectators rather than players with a game to win.
Wenger’s back four are the worst in the premier league top five. To me the age matters but it is not the main point. The guys are weak and slow witted both physically and mentally; a direct consequence of both Birmingham’s goals in the Carling Cup final. Why was the keeper standing in his goal when he knew that he had the advantage to collect the ball in the air before reaching the tallest man in the pitch?
Having said that I still believe Chelsea and Liverpool will help Arsenal to win the Premiership this season by halting ManU’s run.
DISAPPOINTMENT,DISAPPOINTMENT,DISAPPOINTMENT,BUT I THING WENGER IS RIGHT.LONG LIVE ARSENAL FC.
The football journalist writes articles thinking about the last results, but why they do not see the previous ones. Mr. Pinto, had you written the same article if Arsenal had won? I am not sure about it.
You should not judge Mr. Wenger thinking about the last game. It is true the Arsenal has not won any competition in the last years, but they are fighting with young players.
Arsenal Youngsters are good players but they can't become champions cos they didn't have in them...So for sure they need experience and inspirational players in their team...Gotta Change Wenger or Accept the fact arsenal for long will be 3rd or 4th best team in the league...
yeah if i remember well it wwa the semi of Cl agaisnt Man u at the emirate,,,,
see this comments of Evra n Ronaldo,,,it was an easy win b'ze it was a match of boys against Men,,,Man u 3 asenal 1......
Sir alex changed the style when ronaldo was in the team thus y they won 3 consecutive titles without mentioning the rest
and what didi wenger do in those years,,,nothing but a beautfull game as he called it,,
we love beauty game wen it matters but titles are more important to us fans
Jose Mo now in madrid once said this asernal team will be the strobgest comes 7 years,,,so still like 2 or 3 for this to happen
Barca they have,,,,Puyol,,Xavi,, Villa,,Alves,,Keita,,all are over 26 to 30's
what about our asernal,,,its simply a high school team
aserne wenger is great manager,,,but can we classified him agaisnt sir furgie,,,Jose,,Anchelot,,no they are far beyond his reach and yet they also use teenagers in they team but only as i games wen they fit and not regulary until they geet that maturity required to face stonger strikers like Didier and Rooney
So wenger and funs,,,just stick to Beauty game and teanagers to maximize profit or sign and win plus profit off cause due to the fact that successful team on the pitch do attract us buyers of their products
Chaos...this could be another empty handed cupless year
I strongly believe everything Pedro stated here is TRUE and a FACT. Am not a fan of Arsenal but Chelsea, still I believe Arsenal is a big club and a good one (from records, past), and it's high time Arsene Wenger wakes up to realities in football and stop giving endless / Inconsistent heart-break to Arsenal FC fans across the globe.
I think Pedro is right. Though I support Man Utd. I think Arsene Wenger is a brillant mind and manager, that said, he is also partly a coward. Why do I say that, All the players he won the league with especially the Invincibles.. these players were matured and were already proved talents, Henry, pires, viera, Wiltord, already had won a world cup with france plus Petit earlier on, Bergkamp was already a world star, Ian wright was not youth products. Most teams in the world especially in Europe don't rely entirely on their youth. they blend the youth with other class world players. He should do the same thing he did by buying Vermalean and Arshavin, oftenly. I think by that he will have the best team in the world. But also all these is done in his wisdom, which I think is to make sure that every year he is always close there but never there and if he is asked he can argue that we only invested 10-15 million so you cannot compete with the likes of Man city and Chelsea and Man Utd.
Finally I would like to predict a change of fortunes in EPL from next season, New teams will be the BIG SIX namely Man UTD, Chelsea, Man City , Tottenham, Villa and Liverpool unless Arsenal change the Notion they will be surpirsed!
i will keep eye on this..
and totally disagree.
I disagree.The writer of this article needed audience so he looked for the right topic.He sounds like a good manager,i would like to know which club he heads and how many trophies he has won!
Arsenal is doing well in its own unique style.You dont have to do what everyone is doing to be right.All good clubs loose,sometimes to the smallest of the underdogs.So the loss to Birmingham city shouldn't be made to look like the loss of the season.
The young Arsenal for your information is second on the EPL League on top of 'senior' teams like Chealsea,Man City and all those pensioners.And are going to the top,have reached the quarter finals of the FA,Are still in the UEFA championship.So shut up man!
So Pedro Pinto believes Arsene Wenger has to rethink his strategy if Arsenal are ever going to win trophies again. I think its fair dinkum to suggest it is Pedro Pinto who must rethink his strategy before coming up with comments that in my view are utter rubbish. AW is known by all and sundry of his preference building from within and develop local talent.
Much has been said about that. Short term losses for long term gains.
I have no problems with Arsenal under AW and I am sure they will win trophies and so is management. If not AW would not be where he is and for so long.
Kneejerk, reactionary and shallow are some of the words that come to ones mind when one reads your article. I'm a Manchester United supporter of 22 years and know the days when two bit commentators like yourself and some deluded plastic fans of my club questioned Sir Alex after a 5 year dry spell. Now those ignoramuses have shut up.
Though I am not a fan of some of his qualities, there is no doubt that Wenger is a visionary who is closer to success than you think. Arsenal is the club I fear this season and the next. In summary Mr Pinto leave managing Arsenal to Wenger, your advice is not worth a dime.
Agree with Pedro.
I won't call my self a big fan of Arsenal but I enjoy watching them.
Today, against Sunderland, I felt AGAIN that the lack of experience and world class players was the main ingredient missing to the team to do well. If you don't have it, then, you can forget about winning major titles.
I read that some people are calling Wenger a visionary. Is it some joke? I assume this is because he brought the best players in France or Holland at an affordable price (or for free in the case of Chamakh) or by taking players from Barca school which is known to be one of the best youth academy in the world. It doesn't make him visionary for me.
Some are talking about Arsenal being close to success. Which game were they watching? In the EPL, against the big guns of the league, Arsenal lost to Man Utd and Chelsea away, to Totenham at home, drew with Man City at home and Liverpool away and only won against a struggling Chelsea (at that time of the year) at home. what about the disastrous 4-4 draw against Newcastle? and today against Sunderland?
If there id a success, it is generally against small teams.
For The champion's league, look at the last 5 winners of Champion's league:
-Inter with Sneijder, Militto, Etoo, Maicon,...
-Barca with Messi, Iniesta, Etoo, Xavi, Pujol...
-Man Utd with Ronaldo, Ferdinand, Giggs,...
-AC Milan with Kaka, Gattuso,...
-Barca with Etoo, Ronaldinho, ...
Only world class players and experienced ones as well.
You don't need billions to bring experienced and world class players. Few of them are at an affordable price for a club like Arsenal.
Don't get me wrong. The point here is not to have a team the like of AC Milan (with majority of players over 30s) or Man City (money club). No, just a mix of experience, 1 or 2 world class players and young nurtured talents.
DEDRO! I Love Arsenal and I like your comment too.
The philosophy is very ok! No problem with that!Lets look at Chealse.MUTD,Liver pool in England.Lets see Real Madrid.
Foot ball is not only spending big money!It ia an art and science!
It is all about intellectual way of thinking in differnet ways for different purpose.Really your comment is constractive and destractive for the existence of real football in the world.As Arsenal supporter,I havent seen strong Goal kp for long time.The other thing is the back 4 players are really ,THEY NEED IMPROVEMENT.They are killing the Club.It is better to think on time.LOOK AT TORES Performance.50 Million Shame!
Arsenal is gd team but wengers time is over for him.arsenal need a new coach not this guy.
Sol Campbell, Gallas, Silvestre are they not experience defenders oooops you forgot he brought in experience players into the defence. Stupid article stupid reporting next time do your homework before your month start talking and misleading readers.
Arsenal is playing beautiful football. The club has many young and talented footballers, dedicated fans and an extremely knowledgeable coach and mentor in Monsieur Arsene Wenger. Let's wish the Gunners well in the contests ahead.
I agree with the writer, Germany was a World Cup contender with the 30 something squad. Arsenal need to blend young and experienced talent. The claim that this is a profitable team is only understood by insiders and those who can understand published accounts; the man in the street believes in trophies, something that has not been forthcoming. Also, remember that the fans who fill up the stadiums are the same man in the street!
Arsene said he was "sorry to fans" after the Arsenel/Barca post-match interview. By this singular act and honourable admission, Pedro, you have been vindicated beyond reasonable doubt. Arsene needs change in tactics and strategies.
Pedro.....when i first read this article, i remained quite for some minutes,then came back to myself, do you know the reason of the silence...? because few days ago i had a terrible argument with some Arsenal fans. so i came to realize that my view in soccer can be compared with such a great soccer viewer and analyst like you.
It high time Wenger starts to please the fans.People do misunderstand the theory of this game, Play young players,good soccer at the end no trophy, then you have to change everything, don`t call yourself Barcelona in England when you don`t win trophy(ies) . If Barca continue like this in two years without a trophy, they will ask Pep to refresh his ideas,it once happened to Frank Rijkaard.This is high time for Arsenal to think and re-think about their style. Wenger all you are doing now is pleasing the administration of Arsenal and displeasing the FANS, you are a big coach but you must know Greatness will never come without Trophy(ies) in soccer.
Ive always been a huge Arsenal fan but I do agree with some of the comments posted regarding the lack of results. Mr Wenger is one of the best tacticians in the world, but he does need to bring in some raw n fresh talent. I don't see Fabregas staying with Arsenal next season. Once he leaves, where's the creative spark going to come from? The Denilsons, the Sagnas, the Bendtners are all just there, but they fail to make that much needed impression. Offload them Mr Wenger.
Maybe Mr Wenger should bring in someone like Cavani (Napoli) or maybe a Robben or someone in that league. If only King Henry hadn't left the club...
I guess the writer has been proved right,all the people that critize him will now eat the humble pie.one thing most Arsenal fans forget is that its the trophy that counts for them at the end of the day!they will never share out of the profit the club is making!!which big club in europe can wait this long to wait for titles without sacking the coach except arsenal? except we are saying that Arsenal is not a big club.......
Hey Pedro... I know your WORLD Sport segment on CNN is devoted to soccer & Tennis, I love these sports.. but I have to go to BBC Sports to find out what is going on with NHL playoffs. Ice hockey is a fantastic sport, please give us fans some of the results during the playoffs!!
That\'s more than snebsile! That\'s a great post!