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Arsene Wenger Future: Could Arsenal's Latest Humiliation Signal The End For The Frenchman?

Arsenal

The Huffington Post UK   First Posted: 16/02/2012 10:34 Updated: 29/02/2012 11:44

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It was more of an Italian sob for Arsene Wenger and Arsenal as they were comprehensively conquered by AC Milan at San Siro.

And bookmakers have now made Pep Guardiola favourite to provide the remedy to cure Arsenal’s trophyless ills at 7/1 after last night's chastening defeat in the Italian capital.

Even the normally cool Wenger hit out at his team's poor play, describing their efforts as a "shocking performance".

Catalan Guardiola looks set to end his brief but brilliant tenure at Barcelona this summer and his availability - coupled with Barça's similar footballing ethos to those in N5 - may be too good for the Emirates board to ignore, irrespective of their public allegiance to their maddening manager.

For Thierry Henry, bidding adieu once again, the parallels to his last goodbye to the club were eerily similar. Back in 2007 Henry played (seemingly) his last match for Arsenal in a home draw that saw Wenger’s side dumped out of the Champions League by PSV Eindhoven. Milan have virtually assured that same fate after overpowering their brittle opponents.

Part of the pitch resembled a matted carpet at the Giuseppe Meazza, but it was telling that Wenger neglected to cite its role in his side’s downfall. Usually one for complaining over the finest minutiae in defeat, the Frenchman instead described his team’s display as a ‘disaster’ and ‘shocking’.

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Milan are a shade of the aura of their great sides under Sacchi, Capello and Ancelotti the last 20 years, but Arsenal were toothless. The mercurial Zlatan Ibrahimovic is often accused of underperforming against the toughest opponents, but on last night’s evidence, Arsenal don’t fall into that category.

Controversially sent off at this stage last season, Robin van Persie arrived in Milan with a score to settle and left with a future to settle. Elsewhere. Looking disenchanted and feeling forlorn, the Dutchman’s contract ends in June 2013 and with averageness spreading through the squad more aggressively than before, the incentives to stay are few.

If his departure would signal Arsenal’s fading then star, then Theo Walcott’s departure would brighten up many fans. Substituted at half time last night, he produced another brainless performance as even his manager could not mask his ineptitude at the highest level of club football.

A football addict, Wenger would struggle without his fix if he were to jump ship into the abyss of unemployment, but the dissent within the club’s following is mounting for him to be pushed.

Ex-Gunners captain read the riot act succinctly:


Patrick Vieira
Really sorry for the result for - there was a lack of leadership

Meanwhile influential supporters were equally scathing:


Darren
Last night was on par with two witless performances Spartak Moscow and Valencia

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It was more of an Italian sob for Arsene Wenger and Arsenal as they were comprehensively conquered by AC Milan at San Siro. And bookmakers have now made Pep Guardiola favourite to provide the remed...
It was more of an Italian sob for Arsene Wenger and Arsenal as they were comprehensively conquered by AC Milan at San Siro. And bookmakers have now made Pep Guardiola favourite to provide the remed...
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GearoidOD
29 Fans
19:35 on 18/02/2012
Wenger's ARSEnal blows hot air !
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
UKVisitor
253 Fans
06:44 on 17/02/2012
Yup, What a crisis, failure in the last 16 of the Champs league. Disaster.

The mistake that has been made at Arsenal is to try to build a tippi-tappy team to win the champs league based on a belief that they would always qualify for Europe. Problem is if Barcelona played in the prem they'd struggle to play so many competitive games and with the physical demands of our league.
Meanwhile Arsenal like ManU are at their best when they play with speed, skill and power, in that order.
Wenger has tried and failed to do the impossible, particularly given the budget he's had, but that's the Board's fault not his. He's come ridiculously close to achieving the impossible and to criticise him for not achieving it is ludicrous.

Put Manu to 1 side, who else in England has a brighter future than us? Chelsea, Man City? Spurs, Liverpool? Not in my opinion. But let's discuss.
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GearoidOD
29 Fans
19:37 on 18/02/2012
He had the money to buy recently ! Just preferred to keep his excuse for being mediocre !
Some guys just prefer to lose !
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
UKVisitor
253 Fans
07:03 on 19/02/2012
There are 3 clubs in this club and at least as many over seas who can always out spend us Gearoid. We were in for Jones from Blackburn and for Mata too, but we will always lose out to the clubs who can offer more than us, I'm not complaining about this, we do it to smaller clubs, but if your solution is to spend more then you're putting short term success over the future of the club. At least we'll have a clubb in 10 years time, not sure every club in the Prem will survive myself
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
meade
850 Fans
 
01:30 on 17/02/2012
Arsenal have overachieved with the talent on hand the past few seasons under Wenger. But the problem is we're supposed to be a big club going after big trophies. Now it seems the club, at all levels, appears content with just being in contention. Even as Liverpool has slipped they've tried to think like a big club, signing big name players, even if they haven't always worked out. We have done little but try and rely on a shaky junior system that has not produced enough top-flight talent to stem the decay in the senior squad.
Can't put it all on Wenger, the board seems fine with the decline, as long the bottom line stays positive. It's all well and good to run a tight financial ship, if that's the goal. But neither Wenger or the board have been totally honest about the project at the Emirates.
You can criticize Wenger about tactics and so forth, but he really has done more with less than almost any other manager in the EPL has been able to do. The problem for Arsenal fans is, why is he continually being asked to?
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GearoidOD
29 Fans
17:21 on 16/02/2012
I suspect part of the problem is that Wenger is simply more comfortable with failure.
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mrdynamite1
18 Fans
13:24 on 16/02/2012
I hope this season is finally the time when the board either put up or pack up. We are the 5th richest football club in the world but out of the top 10 richest clubs we are the only one not to have won anything since 2005.

The way Arsenal is being run and managed is fundamentally wrong. The only reason anyone would get involved in professional sports is to win something. If you are not able to distinguish the difference between profits and success you should be running one of the world's biggest football clubs.

How can a club that rich not have won anything for 7 years? Actually how is that a club that rich can always be routinely schooled by Europe's biggest clubs year in year out without anyone feeling like something needs to change.....?

Wenger needs to leave, he reached the limits of his talents years ago then everybody else got modern and he didn't. Kronke needs to sell up too. An owner of our club that shows no vision, no fire, no passion and no ambition is exactly the problem for AFC, from root to tip.....
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Yakeddie
0 Fans
11:55 on 16/02/2012
Arsenal was like 11 Maltese against 1 Pitbull, there was no contest because the players were scared stiff and they choked throughout the entire match. I shouldn't said it was a match because there wasn't any fight, it was a mauling - period ! Wenger always have a soft spot for his talent young players but they were pitifully missing in the head. Putting player like Park and the Ox is far better because. At least they fight until they can't run anymore not like the lot who played dropped their tail between their hind and run like hell. Was it a match - No no no there was no fight it was called a captulation. At least if the players play like Kamikazis then it is not shameful. Wenger you are so confident of the lot you have now you refused to buy in January , congratulation here is your Valentine day reward kiss your talented players only one or two seniors tried their best.
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