Wenger Swan Song?

I think the distressing and depressing 2-1 loss to Manchester United today might be the one that ultimately costs Wenger his job -- or should do. We should probably wait to the end of the season and see if we can snatch Martin O'Neill (probably wishful thinking) or someone else of that stature, but it is clear that Wenger's best days are behind him. After a nice comeback to 1-1 and looking the likelier to win it, Wenger made the worst substitution of his career -- taking out the liveliest presence on the pitch Chamberlain and replacing him with a man who is wanted by the fans about as much as Romney by the South Carolina voters. Within nine minutes of that substitution, Man U scored the winner, after some poor defending that centered on the little Russian who couldn't. Rather than go through a report card, which included subpar performances from Djourou, Walcott (please sell this constant disappointment), Ramsey (who has lost all confidence from what I can tell) and Rosicky (can we take the money and run on this player I like but who is past his prime), together with average performances from almost everyone else (a decent game for Mertesacker and Van Persie scored, but he really should have had a hat trick), and instead explain why I think it is time for Wenger to move on, or retire.

1. The most obvious issue is the lack of depth on this squad and his unwillingness over the past few years to sign proven talent and unload unwanted players like Almunia, Arshavin, Rosicky, Chamakh, Diaby and Denilson. Some of this dead weight is the only choice we currently have to come in and try to score goals for us late and this has been a major reason for many of our losses or late draws. Every other top team in the league has impact substitutes that can come on the pitch -- from the best second team in the world at Man City to a number of good options for Man U and Chelsea to a world class striker that often doesn't start for Tottenham. This summer Wenger was hailed for finally spending some money, but Park has turned out to be a waste of money, Mertesacker is decent but better centre backs were available and Gervinho and Santos have been decent (Arteta was definitely a good pickup, though I would have preferred us spending money on Mata earlier in the summer). There were also rumors of a move for Demsey and that looked like a big miss given his form this season. In fact, if we had picked him up, maybe the season would not have begun so poorly. In any case, Wenger's stubborness in this area is just costing us to much and making us a mediocre team. The latest example is obviously not shelling out the 3 to 8 million pounds that could have brought in a fullback. That arguably cost us in all three of our losses this year (though to be fair they wouldn't have been around for the Fulham collapse). 

2. Tactics. As I said earlier, Wenger is extremely stubborn when it comes to putting in players just because they are on the bench. Arshavin has been truly terrible all season and we just don't benefit from him being on the field, even if he does pick up the occasional assist. We were looking the stronger squad at the time of the equalizer and the second Chamberlain leaves we look weak again. The same can be said of continuing to play the consistently terrible Chamakh and the average Rosicky in game after game. They tend to make the side worse and the lack of any consistent scoring threat outside of Van Persie makes the team too one dimensional. 

3. Related to 2 is something both Nasri and Fabergas said after leaving the squad. Essentially they claimed that the lack of competition for first team football does affect motivation. Fabergas was talking in general, though he is unbelievable with Barcelona since leaving, but Nasri (who is not my favorite player anyway) also made this point and I think he's right. Walcott should have been sat on a couple of occasions in lieu of Chamberlain (made clear today) to push him to improve. He had a nice spell during a part of the season but is now truly terrible again in his decision-making and finishing (and yes I know he scored a goal last week for those who pretend he's anything but a fast guy who doesn't really understand the game). The same can be said of the major drop in form of Ramsey, who has lost the edge he was demonstrating earlier in the season and just can't seem to put the ball in the net, even with all his talent. 

4. Training/Injury Management: I know it might be a mistake to criticize the man who modernized diet and conditioning in football but something is wrong with the medical staff at Arsenal. They consistently underestimate the time players will be out and have misdiagnosed several injuries in the past couple of years. It might also be true based on the number of injuries that something is wrong with the training regiment, as far too many players are getting injuries (both short and long term). This might also relate to 2, given that the general lack of depth forces players to play too much. This three game losing streak, in fact, together with the loss to Wolves show the effects of the crowded holiday season and our lack of quality and depth.

5. Tactics: to me the substitution today was just the latest mistake in a long run of tactical errors by Wenger that even maligned him during our better years (when we lost a lot of close finals including the champions league finals). The Gunners attack has just gone stale and nothing has really been done to address it. Depth and injuries have played a role but clearly something has to change strategically if we are to compete.
 
6. Finally is the most important thing to me. Too many players have lost faith in their manager. From Walcott claiming he should be playing in a central forward role (though he hasn't shown why at all) and Fabergas and Nasri leaving to Van Persie screaming "no" in his direction for what become known as "the substitution" (or "from Russia we loath") and all the quality players that have said no thank you to transfer inquiries -- not to mention five goals after the 70th minute in our three game losing streak -- he just doesn't seem to have the golden touch he had for much of his career. 


I still love Wenger "the philosopher" but he is moving dangerously close to turning by beloved Gooners in a mediocre mid table squad -- or worse. It is time for the owners to sit down and find an adequate replacement this summer and to demand that that replacement spend money to restore our past glory. Yes we have young talent coming up, but without seasoned veterans around them, we end up collapsing in key matches. Maybe Wenger will simply retire, which would be best for all, but I hope with some sadness to not see him roaming the sideline next season.