Editor
16 April 2009 - 15:06
by Nigel Brown
Staring down the barrel of a gun was the image the majority of the Arsenal faithful were presented with for the last six months. A host of high profile injuries, losses to Fulham, Stoke City, Hull City, Aston Villa and Manchester City, de-railed the professor's young guns season. Or so some thought...
The majority of journalists concluded Wenger's youthful endeavours were naïve, sighting a lack of spending as reason to condemn Arsenal to another trophy-less season, and a one-way ticket to the Europa league.
One of the high profile critics of Wenger was the Mail on Sunday columnist Piers Morgan. Despite a pathetic apology a week later, the life-long Arsenal fan and season ticket holder, made a rallying cry to send the Frenchman to the stocks where he could be mocked, flocked and hung out to dry.
Ramblings of a muttonhead
The muttonhead Morgan preached that the time was right to sever ties with the most successful manager in Arsenal's history. And more importantly, the architect who has sculptured Arsenal in the image of his tailor made vision of how a modern football club should be run, resulting in a secure and successful future at the Emirates Stadium.
All those who followed the pinhead Piers don't hide behind your shame. Are these the words of a true Arsenal fan? Here is what Mr Morgan said:
“I think he has hit the wall, I really do. His obstinate, ridiculously blinkered insistence that he can 'win it with kids' has now been cruelly, horribly exposed.
“We've won nothing for three years with this strategy, and I've said since I started this column in August, we're not going to win anything this year either.
“With no leader like Adams or Vieira to guide them, and no older, experienced players to look up to, they don't know what to do as the pressure intensifies, the fans get on their back, and the losses accelerate.”
Arsene Wenger has now orchestrated a Champions League Semi Final encounter with the finest side in not only England and Europe, but the World. The spectacle of Europe's top two footballing sides duelling for a place in Rome, will be watched by millions around the world. Purposefully cementing Arsenal Football Club as an established fixture amongst the glitterati of world football. While, furthermore installing the club's heritage in the hearts, and crucially the freewilled passing football, in the memory of football fans across the planet.
'In Wenger we trust'
The Arsenal fans always held the phrase, 'In Wenger we trust,' as the epigram for the clubs backing of the Frenchman. Five poor results, in fact 450 minutes of below par performances forced a contingent of the Arsenal fans to ridicule twelve years of success on 27 000 average seconds. A cup double, and dare I say, a late charge for the title could turn the 2008-2009 campaign from torment and ordeal into triumph.
Wenger only asks for the fans and players to believe. Any loss of faith can widen the smallest crack that appears, Emmanuel Eboue and Nicklas Bendtner haters take note. The professor has hand picked these youngsters to dominate European football for the next 15 years, or at the very least make a severe impact on its relief.
Only Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverool have secure long term objectives in place, supporting one man with the club run ruthlessly from top to bottom. Football has always shown that the most succesfull clubs are born out of these conditions, but the fans and muttonhead's of this world, must realise that patience is needed in football. And particularly, in modern football an understanding of how special winning silverware is, and how trophyless campaigns can be the start of new beginnings. Until next time...