Time To Get Real About Arsene & Project Youth May Just Work

On a merry-go-round, going the wrong way

- A Sense Of Freedom, The Armoury Show

Which is more or less how the Arsenal manager and squad must feel; pushing continually against the flow of the criticism, some constructive, most allying itself to the age-old chant, “You don’t know what you’re doing“. Too many armchair managerial fantasists believe they know what is best for the club, the curse of the YOUTube Championship Manager generation. That the only information they have to go on is the prejudices of the media is neither here nor there. That the players they desire could turn out as easily to be White Elephants as gems seems to matter not.

Arsene though is making more of an effort for British jobs than any politician. Knowing that hacks face a summer of torment and worry about their jobs, he launched his campaign to keep them gainfully employed on French TV. Likewise Florentino Perez, never knowingly understated, by seeking to return to his own personal fiefdom. Without those two, what on earth would the back pages have been filled with this morning?

The interview is being interpreted as a shot across the Board’s bows yet in truth it was nothing more than an honest answer to a question that has dogged him for pretty much a decade: when will you be leaving for a bigger club? It is something for them to fill the column inches over the years so why should this year be any different?

Discontent is their angle this time, targets being Wenger and Adebayor. According to reports, the latter’s value is £24m, a sum that happens to conveniently sit in the pockets of the Milanese, although they need to be told that White Fivers are no longer legal tender. My own view is that Adebayor is a key player and should be kept but if he does not want to, the club ought to “cash in”, replacing him with someone who has the desire to be play for the club. And that applies to all players, irrespective of their position.

Yet it is an attitude that has dangers, not least of which is when the player is the best – or the best – in the squad. One thing that has not been recognised enough is the move away from this reliance that Wenger has put into place. Previous seasons have seen Arsenal rely on Henry or Fabregas. Now, Wenger has an array of attacking talent, capable of providing the spark. It is this aspect that requires the consistency now as the final step.

Psychoanalysing the words of a player is notoriously difficult, the oft-misquoted Hollywood view in Westerns “White Man speaks with forked tongue” applying to them as they as tell you, “Of course I am not going“, whilst looking over their shoulder at suitors, winking, and finishing the sentence out of microphone range with, “to stay“. Troublingly, Adebayor has for some time referred to himself in the third person, responding to questions about his future, “If, Porto, for example, wants Adebayor, it is not Adebayor’s fault. Why boo me?“

Crowd mentality is such that the loudest voices are interpreted as being the majority view, despite the minority making the noise; the silence of the many is viewed as being tacit approval of the view being espoused, even if the thoughts are along the lines of, “Oh, FFS, button it, you d1ckhead“. The silent majority need to find their voices to allow commonsense to prevail.

Elsewhere, the worst kept secret in English football, after the departures of Wenger, Cesc and Ronaldo to La Liga, of course, is out in the open. England’s bid for the 2018 World Cup has been officially launched – no, that’s not it – with The Sun this morning has published a possible line-up for the Finals which includes, shhhhhh, FOUR Arsenal players.

Indeed, if transfer rumours are to be believed, there are two Arsenal players-in-waiting there as well. The current members of the first team squad are Theo, Jack Wilshere, Gavin Hoyte and Kieran Gibbs with the others, Jack Rodwell and Fabian Delph, bringing with them echoes of the past. An England team that is formed of a majority of Arsenal players? Who’d have thunk it? Like yesterday’s robots, sports desks are overloading with “Cannot compute“, the thought that Arsene might actually be good for English football is too much for them to take.

Right, I’m off to enjoy a birthday drink or ten – it’s opening time somewhere in the world – so play nicely, Boys and Gurls. ’til Tomorrow.