Arsenal FC: A club reflecting it’s manager

It’s often said that animals reflect their owners persoanlities. This is the case with my Dad’s cat, that is old, lazy and happy in retirement.

How does this have anything to do with football you’re probably asking. Well I have thought for a long time that the players of a specific club react to several important factors around them.

As we saw with Rangers last season, off field turmoil heavilly affected the clubs performance in the league. Handing Celtic the title by effectively going into administration, the players appeared to care less knowing that they weren’t playing for anything despite all their hard efforts.

Let us look at Manchester City. More players appearing to become angry quicker, similar to their manager in his most recent press conference and after match antics last night.

However, as an Arsenal fan I find myself sitting there feeling like the owner of a cat who just wants to be left alone. It appears to have no life left in it after waking up with a sore head from a night of too much cat-nip.

I can’t remember the last time an Arsene Wenger inspired team would go away from home in the Champions League and go 2-0 only to draw 2-2 and hang on by the skin of their teeth (with the exception of Barcelona games).

I also look to previous games against Manchester United and Shalke at home. The first half against Reading. All games in which the players, just couldn’t or didn’t appear to want to play.

We as fans pay good money to support our teams. Season ticket prices at Arsenal are some of the highest in the world and we deserve significantly better than what we have on display at this moment in time. The players look deserted of confidence – a thought reflected by Le Prof himself. However if you were playing for a team where you sold your best player every season wouldn’t you wake up wondering what the point was?

Which brings me to the crux of everything. Wenger himself for the first time in many many years, appears to be suffering himself. It appeared to begin in the summer with the sale of RVP and for the first time Wenger finaly seemed like a broken man. Another product of his work leaving before repaying the time Wenger had put in.

Possibly fed up of looking at the Silver Polish unused in his draw, he seems to be trying to please everybody. Sorry Arsene, that is even more dangerous than betting your house on Mertesaker outrunning Walcott in a 100m race.

In recent times, Wenger has come under scrutiny. No more so than from myself, fellow writers, Le Grove and Niki Wainwright amongst others. So if Wenger is trying to please everybody, then where is it all going wrong?

The tactics appear useless, 4-3-3 doesn’t suit Arsenal and pleasing the board by selling his best players and not replacing them with similar quality appears to be taking it’s toll on this Arsenal managing legend. The fans have sounded their discontent at the AGM and even then he was trying to appease everybody. However the wool was not pulled over many people’s eyes.

We sit early November, with Arsenal out of the title race barr the shouting and struggling to get out our CL group. We have Bradford in the Capital One cup Quarters and the FA cup is yet to be drawn. I feel another summer of uncomfortable numbers for Arsene. I can see us finishing outside the top 4 for the first time in over a decade and a half.

But Wenger himself needs to inspire. An effort of Churchillian proportions is needed if this club is to turn around and make this a season to remember. At this moment in time, the club, the players, the manager and the fans, all appear to be reflecting the same emotion. Frustration, disappointment and general resignation that yet another year will go by without Arsenal having their name on a major trophy.

This my friends is a key part of our season, we alone cannot get the players playing better. Arsene needs to dig deep if he wants to remain the man at the helm for the foreseeable future.

Feedback welcome as always

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