From Mark Redfern :
Hello Myles,
As you may recall, in my 1st ever email I sent to you I explained how me and my group of friends were very sceptical of your stance on what was happening at Arsenal and we were convinced you were writing inflammatory articles just to boost circulation.
A few years on and my perception (at least) has altered, and I now acknowledge that a fair few issues you’ve written about are playing out just like you said.
I also feel that you have become more balanced in allowing alternative views to be posted on your site almost certainly boosting circulation and placating disgruntled Arsenal fans like me from ignoring your views. Kudos to you.
It has been a while since I wrote in so I thought I’d run this by you and your readers.
Perception is 9/10th’s of the war is of course a play on words and an exaggeration.
“Actuals” are of course highly important but what good is a football club that doesnt win trophies?
International business perception of the product is key on many different levels.
Football is no different, when you consider marketing and advertising partnerships are won or lost on people’s perception, investors want to associated with the best and currently Arsenal are far from it.
Managers, players and fans are no different (though true diehard fans suffer from an irrational,emotional attachment which denies them any choice in the matter. Your chosen football team is for life, not just for Christmas!
On all levels Arsenal are slowly and painfully failing.
Yes we have a new stadium , envy of many, yes we have consistently been in the champions league for a generation but that is a small miracle rather than a right, and whilst the rich get richer the rest get more competitive only Arsenal stay in their status quo inevitably leading to poorer results.
If there is a fact that best sums up the perception people have of Arsenal on a footballing level is just how many players who were alleged Arsenal fans have rightly or wrongly ( and even as a fan, you’d be hard pressed to say they didn’t make the right decisions for their careers) chosen moving to United over Arsenal.
Ashley Young, Chris Smalling, Robin Van Persie and now, potentially, Wilfried Zaha?
All have confessed to supporting Arsenal but all supported them so well that in Arsenal’s hour of need, perceived that their careers were better off served at United.
I am getting a little ahead of the game here as Zaha may still join Arsenal, and yes money may have been a factor but as a real Arsenal fan the decision would be a no-brainer.
Having fleetingly played semi-professionally, I doubt if footballers remember what supporting a team truly means. If they did the” little boy inside” RVP would have kicked his arse and asked, “What the hell are you thinking?”
In my opinion Arsenal would be an ideal fit for Pep but I now fear once again the perception of the club is one that has lost its way and he will instead let his head rule his heart and choose the slightly simpler task of winning trophies at a super rich club that isn’t afraid to spend. I
Investment, ticket sales and future support are all teetering on the edge of a chasm that Liverpool have already fallen and are slowly,trying to claw their way back.
Perception is all I have to work on regarding what Arsenal’s true Modus Operandi is.
But one superstar signing may just be enough to turn Arsenal around breathe new life into the lungs and change the perception of the club for the better before it’s too late.
Myles says :
It’s already too late. It’s way too late, Mark.
Arshavin was a superstar but he made most of Wenger’s babies look slow-witted, so he was marginalised.
Months ago I heard that Wenger and Dein had made a pact to sign a world class striker.
Looks like David Villa was that star. But they can’t get him.
A sharpshooter like David Villa can make a good team great.
But he can’t make a bad team good.
Do you honestly think David Villa would consider talking to Arsenal without asking Cesc Fabregas about Wenger?
Why would Fabregas advise his friend, one of Europe’s finest strikers, to join a team that can’t beat Bradford City and hasn’t won a trophy since 2005?