Arsene’s Day of Redemption

Embarrassing. Lackadaisical. Unmotivated.

No, I am not referring to our recent hammering against Chel$ea, but rather our performance against Swansea. As for the Chel$ea match, take your pick.

This was a game we HAD to win. Convincingly at that. To draw against an opponent who were in dismal form and truthfully lacked any bite outside of Wilfried Bony, was appalling. There was no one in the team to grab the game by the balls until Prince Podolski came on. The Ox had his moments but you could tell his confidence was not very high after his last two poor outings.  What was most troubling, is that we had been very solid against lower opposition immediately after a big game letdown this season (Sunderland at home, West Ham away). Whether or not the result came down to stubborn Wenger’s tactics or the players not being prepared mentally, it was a horrific draw when the team and the fans needed a resounding win. Anyways, I take little joy in dwelling because the league was already a pipe dream at the start of the match. With that in mind, the match against Man Shitty tomorrow is much more than just a Premier League match…

It is hopefully, Arsene Wenger’s Day of Redemption.

My faith in Wenger is unwavering and the man deserves to, and will, leave under his own accord. However, Wenger needs this win for himself. He needs this win to show himself, along with the rest of the world but perhaps more importantly the team, that he (and they) can still get it done in the big games. It is not unreasonable to think that Wenger has shown doubt in himself by what he said after the Chel$ea match and what he said today. There is one quote in the article from today that is quite revealing. When pressed about signing a new contract, Wenger said:

“But I want to have a feeling coming out of the season that I have done the maximum for the club.”

If Arsene does not win tomorrow, or more horrifically gets his tactics wrong like he did against Chel$ea, then how can he feel he has done the “maximum for the club” ?

The beginning of this campaign signaled a new air around the Emirates in which the club finally had funds, Gazidis preaching, and the signing of Mesut Özil. Dismissing the FA Cup, we were supposed to compete on all fronts and we have failed to this point. Granted the first leg against Bayern was a referee nightmare but how many times have Arsenal said that?  There is an ever growing divide between Arsenal fans, and to be fair it has been present for quite some time, however, it has now taken a front seat. All this has lead to everyone questioning Wenger’s ability to lead the club.

What I now fear is with a bad result tomorrow, Arsene Wenger will confirm his own doubt and join the ranks of those questioning him. If that happens, then you can bet Wenger will look at the “In Arsene We Trust” banner quizzically and it would be a disheartening end to a career for a man who gave us so much.

Nevertheless, I hope we demolish that blue lot from Manchester and this post is sent to the archive.