Arsene Wenger. A Thousand Games

[robbieh]

Have to say it is pretty embarrassing that he has never beaten Mourinho in god knows how many games. You suspect if Jose had managed Arsenal he'd have won plenty of games against Chelsea.

As I said embarrassing.

 

[prestonibbo_mcfc]

One of the greatest managers in the game with a remarkable list of achievements. The impact he has had on Arsenal is incredible and he will leave a legacy to the club which stretches far beyond the pitch. Three League titles, one undefeated, and four FA cups within the first 500 games is fantastic but the second half of his rein is perhaps what sets him apart. In any of the last 9 years, he could have walked away from Arsenal and into any club in the world. There is no doubt in my mind that if had left the club after the move to The Emirates, it would be Arsenal, not Arsene Wenger who would be in a worse position today.

Absolutely. The fact that he still hasn't signed that new contract with what, three months to go, deeply worries me. I feel that he'll call it a day if we fail to get the FA cup. But then, if we win it, he might take the opportunity to leave on a high note. It's a little bit of a Catch-22. He's brought us to a fantastic position, with a beautiful, revenue driving stadium, a solid experienced squad with the right amount of youth potential bubbling away, and financially in a very good position as well. That worries me too. Maybe he feels he's in his 60s and its time to take things easier in life, and perhaps he feels he's set the club up perfectly for the next man to take over. If/when that happens (yes I do have a lingering hope he'll be our manager for eternity, somehow), the next manager is going to have perhaps the second biggest pair of shoes to fill in football, after wee Davie taking over at Old Trafford. I just can't imagine anyone who could hope to replace what he brings to the club.

Certainly not trophies ;-)

 

[Ronuja]

One of the greatest managers in the game with a remarkable list of achievements. The impact he has had on Arsenal is incredible and he will leave a legacy to the club which stretches far beyond the pitch. Three League titles, one undefeated, and four FA cups within the first 500 games is fantastic but the second half of his rein is perhaps what sets him apart. In any of the last 9 years, he could have walked away from Arsenal and into any club in the world. There is no doubt in my mind that if had left the club after the move to The Emirates, it would be Arsenal, not Arsene Wenger who would be in a worse position today.

Absolutely. The fact that he still hasn't signed that new contract with what, three months to go, deeply worries me. I feel that he'll call it a day if we fail to get the FA cup. But then, if we win it, he might take the opportunity to leave on a high note. It's a little bit of a Catch-22. He's brought us to a fantastic position, with a beautiful, revenue driving stadium, a solid experienced squad with the right amount of youth potential bubbling away, and financially in a very good position as well. That worries me too. Maybe he feels he's in his 60s and its time to take things easier in life, and perhaps he feels he's set the club up perfectly for the next man to take over. If/when that happens (yes I do have a lingering hope he'll be our manager for eternity, somehow), the next manager is going to have perhaps the second biggest pair of shoes to fill in football, after wee Davie taking over at Old Trafford. I just can't imagine anyone who could hope to replace what he brings to the club.

Certainly not trophies ;-)

He's won seven major ones during his tenure of 18 years. Granted, they're all from the first half of his reign, but that's a rate of about one major trophy every three years, or a little bit better, 2 point something years per trophy. That's fairly impressive by most standards, I would think, if you look beyond the Mourinhos, the Guardiolas, and the Fergusons of the world. Considering the constraints of the past few seasons and the shitty lack of faith shown by many of the players he built and gave a chance for, I still think he is the right man to take us into the 'new era where we got plenty of cash!'. Of course the devastating embarssments to top sides, a fairly recent phenomena, have to be addressed and its extremely concerning that we don't seem to learn, but I'm afraid he'll take them as an indication that he should call it a day. Which I feel would be a bad thing for Arsenal, regardless of how many fans are calling for his head in the aftermath of the Stamford Bridge massacre.

 

[Dubai Blue]

Absolutely. The fact that he still hasn't signed that new contract with what, three months to go, deeply worries me. I feel that he'll call it a day if we fail to get the FA cup. But then, if we win it, he might take the opportunity to leave on a high note. It's a little bit of a Catch-22. He's brought us to a fantastic position, with a beautiful, revenue driving stadium, a solid experienced squad with the right amount of youth potential bubbling away, and financially in a very good position as well. That worries me too. Maybe he feels he's in his 60s and its time to take things easier in life, and perhaps he feels he's set the club up perfectly for the next man to take over. If/when that happens (yes I do have a lingering hope he'll be our manager for eternity, somehow), the next manager is going to have perhaps the second biggest pair of shoes to fill in football, after wee Davie taking over at Old Trafford. I just can't imagine anyone who could hope to replace what he brings to the club.

Certainly not trophies ;-)

He's won seven major ones during his tenure of 18 years. Granted, they're all from the first half of his reign, but that's a rate of about one major trophy every three years, or a little bit better, 2 point something years per trophy. That's fairly impressive by most standards, I would think, if you look beyond the Mourinhos, the Guardiolas, and the Fergusons of the world. Considering the constraints of the past few seasons and the shitty lack of faith shown by many of the players he built and gave a chance for, I still think he is the right man to take us into the 'new era where we got plenty of cash!'. Of course the devastating embarssments to top sides, a fairly recent phenomena, have to be addressed and its extremely concerning that we don't seem to learn, but I'm afraid he'll take them as an indication that he should call it a day. Which I feel would be a bad thing for Arsenal, regardless of how many fans are calling for his head in the aftermath of the Stamford Bridge massacre.

But that average doesn't hold up to any scrutiny whatsoever in the real world, precisely because they were all won in the first half of his tenure. If he really had been picking up a trophy every 2-3 years throughout his whole career, he wouldn't be coming in for any criticism at all, but he hasn't and rightly gets pulled up on it. There surely has to be some limit placed on the credit you allow a manager for achievements secured over a decade ago.

You also shouldn't be so scared about him leaving. The longer he stays, the more difficult his successor's job becomes and he'll be going at some point in the next three years anyway. As we've seen over at the Swamp, having one man overseeing all aspects of a club for so long is not conducive to a smooth transition.

 

[Gillespie]

Certainly not trophies ;-)

He's won seven major ones during his tenure of 18 years. Granted, they're all from the first half of his reign, but that's a rate of about one major trophy every three years, or a little bit better, 2 point something years per trophy. That's fairly impressive by most standards, I would think, if you look beyond the Mourinhos, the Guardiolas, and the Fergusons of the world. Considering the constraints of the past few seasons and the shitty lack of faith shown by many of the players he built and gave a chance for, I still think he is the right man to take us into the 'new era where we got plenty of cash!'. Of course the devastating embarssments to top sides, a fairly recent phenomena, have to be addressed and its extremely concerning that we don't seem to learn, but I'm afraid he'll take them as an indication that he should call it a day. Which I feel would be a bad thing for Arsenal, regardless of how many fans are calling for his head in the aftermath of the Stamford Bridge massacre.

But that average doesn't hold up to any scrutiny whatsoever in the real world, precisely because they were all won in the first half of his tenure. If he really had been picking up a trophy every 2-3 years throughout his whole career, he wouldn't be coming in for any criticism at all, but he hasn't and rightly gets pulled up on it. There surely has to be some limit placed on the credit you allow a manager for achievements secured over a decade ago.

You also shouldn't be so scared about him leaving. The longer he stays, the more difficult his successor's job becomes and he'll be going at some point in the next three years anyway. As we've seen over at the Swamp, having one man overseeing all aspects of a club for so long is not conducive to a smooth transition.

It's going to be tough when he leaves regardless of when.

I'm in favour of him staying BUT he must deliver the FA Cup and at least 4th spot this season. If he can't do that and after the omnishambles at City, Anfield and Chelsea, you'd have to assume he has gone as far as he can and so should go in that event.