Arsenal Blues

Arsenal fans are apoplectic about the just started season, worrying about the lack of quality signings, the loss of our captain and best player (Fabergas) and the imminent departure of one of our other greats Sam Nasri. As one of those fans, I am apoplectic as well. Every day, several times a day, I go onto the various blogs and websites with sparkles in my eyes, hoping to finally see the signing of Mata or Cahill or Hazard, or anyone I've ever heard of. But with only 12 days left in the summer transfer window, the situation is starting to look dire. What is to become of our beloved team? Are we to fade toward mediocrity that will make it harder to attract top players in the future? Are we just in the midst of a short-term decline that will be fixed by all the young talent we have maturing to first team glory? Or will they follow the march out of the Emirates as so many players have in recent years as they hit their prime, looking for the glory of silverware and salaries with top clubs that double the 90,000 pound a week max that Arsenal pays their players. In the end, it appears the issue is one of money.

Money has come to define sports in recent years, and even as the biggest spenders don't always win, it is becoming increasingly clear that money is the great divider today. For six years, since the last time Arsenal won anything, they have spent substantially less than any other club in England (in either the first or second division). Given this reality, it is commendable that they have maintained their position in the top four and competed each year for the league and other trophies. Yet the late season collapses have shown the lack of leadership and winning tradition that have befallen a team based primarily on youth. Should sports come down to money? Is loyalty an erstwhile attribute lost in the modern world of greed and winning at any cost? And does money guarantee success? The answer to the last question is no. While teams that spend do tend to succeed in football (aka soccer), baseball, And basketball and other sports, there are exceptions to the rule on both sides of the equation. The MetSs have been spending like crazy, for example, but are already essentially done for the year. Chelsea has been spending a fortune and though they've had success, walked away with nothing to show for the money last year. And the San Francisco Giants and Dallas Mavericks beat out the competition with lower total payrolls then, for example, the New York Yankess or Miami Heat -- who clearly tried to buy their way to a championship.

Back to Arsenal, the next week could very well determine the contours of our entire season. Tomorrow we face off against a revamped Liverpool team that spent huge (and arguably overpaid for several players) to try to regain their former mainstay in the top four. Next up is a Champions League qualifier second leg against a dangerous team from Udinese that has the advantage of home field in trying to prematurely end Arsenal's CL season for the first time in years. And then dreaded Man U, the team I despise more than any other in sport. One hopes a big signing next week will at least give us a chance against Man U and a surprisingly resilient early defense can hold off the competition in the other two fixtures. I still dream of waking up each day with two or three big signings again restoring hope. A boy can dream ...