From David White: Arsenal still in it but…
As Mike says, we are a couple of high quality signings short of being real contenders. But, we’ve been saying that for years.
Please stop deluding yourselves, Arsenal is a business not a football team.
Stan is an investor, not a sugar daddy – he wants a return on his money.
The business model is : qualify for the Champions League at the lowest possible cost.
Consistently challenging for the league would require an extra investment of £25m+ a season for little return. Not going to happen.
From Graham : Mike
Mike’s mail made me chuckle.
Arsenal are 5 or 6 players short in all positions.
It’s a lightweight squad but when has it ever been anything else since Wenger has been in charge?
He’s missed the boat yet again, this is the one season when he could win it, purely because all the teams who can win it are faltering due to other teams improving and giving them a proper game!
West Brom, Norwich, these teams used to be bread and butter points, not any more., But we’ve said that before haven’t we?
Who remembers when we used to play the team down the road and the thought of getting beaten wouldn’t even been considered?
Mike forgot to mention the best signing we could make would be a new manager, a basic requirement really.
From Dave Blakemore : “If only” has started early this season
Hi Myles,
Read the mail from Mike with much amusement.
He starts by saying that those who believe the season is over are crazy and reactive and then proceeds to outline the players Wenger will need to buy in order for us to be successful in the coming years.
Here we go again with the “if only”. If we buy this guy and sell that guy then we will be competitive etc etc etc.
For goodness sake, wake up and smell the roses, we are talking about Wenger.
He may buy one or two players but he is not going to buy the numbers we need.
If you want to play the “if” game then start with this season. “If” we had bought a striker and a defensive midfielder we would probably be on top of the league right now.
Last season, well, “if” we had had a decent goalkeeper we may have won it. The season before, “if” we had……. 5 seasons before that, “if”only….
It is always the same.
We have been consistently short of a minimum of 2 players every season for the last 8 -10 seasons.
“If” only we could get Guardiola.
Myles says:
Soon after Berlusconi killed the European Cup, Arsenal began planning for 3rd and 4th while the plausible spin doctor talked every year about winning the league.
I’ve often thought: Arsene Wenger is truly the creation of Silvio Berlusconi and Media Partners.
Without that radical change, which protected the clubs with big overheads, Wenger would have played about 15 seasons in the Uefa Cup or the Cup Winners Cup.
Stan’s priority is to keep Wenger, while Wenger’s priority is keep his job.
Who wouldn’t want to run a one-man show and rake in £11m a year?