By Walter Broeckx
Just over a year ago I had the good fortune to be able to talk with one of the most important people at our club. And just before you get too carried away with thinking who, let me say at once that it wasn’t Wenger.
The meeting happened in December 2012. And in our conversation we touched on a few things that have been mentioned by Untold since then. Indeed I have written a few articles about it, although at the time I didn’t mention the discussions I had had; they were the articles that said we should keep the faith and that we would soon enter a new era.
In the conversation we had we talked about the media. And it became clear that the media having a go at Arsenal is not something that is only seen by Untold. No, you could feel the anger from this person within the club about the way the media treat Arsenal. In fact at the time he called what the club was facing “the media onslaught”. But I was told that the discussion was in confidence, and so I have kept that confidence.
So those at the top of the club are very well aware of the way the media treats Arsenal. But I think that this attitude of the media is something that is almost impossible to change. Worse, it is an approach that influences a lot of supporters. You can even see it on Untold when people just use the blind headlines that are spouted by the media and reproduce them time and time again.
He also said something about Arsenal finishing third the season before. And that if you had read Arsenal.com (or Untold I added) you never would have known this. As there was nothing but doom and gloom stories that were written all year long.
One implication of this is that the AAA as we like to call them have not gone unnoticed by Arsenal. And the way the media and the AAA talk about Arsenal in the same way was something that hadn’t gone down well I feel.
But what this person also told me is what I have been seeing since then. He said that things are finally changing. And he hinted at new deals that would give us extra fire power. And since then we have had those new deals that will be bringing money in from the coming summer. Of course he didn’t give me any details about them but the new Emirates deal and new kit deal were on the cards and I knew they were coming.
And what is more is that he told me about the things the club would do in the future when it comes to players. No he didn’t start to call names; of course not. But he said that Arsenal would make sure that the right players were bought.
There would be no hasty buying of players for the sake of it. Players would only be bought in when their quality was bringing something extra to the club. Since our conversation Arsenal has brought in Monreal who is a Spanish international player. The country that has dominated international football the last 6 years.
And we have bought Özil. I don’t think that many will say that he is a crap player. Well that is apart from the English media of course immediately followed by the blogs that run from the AAA point of view. So I have been told.
But the general point is that they will only look to bring real quality players. Not only quality players of course. Buying Sanogo on a free (contradiction isn’t it?) is also needed at times. If he doesn’t make it, no big deal. If he does make it we can only be happy about it. I think nobody will regret having taken the chance to sign Flamini on a free. People now argue why he isn’t picked every game in fact.
But what he told me is that they wouldn’t buy players that would bring a burden to the club. Since then we have let a lot of players go and this summer this will continue with the last of them hanging around.
So the message was clear. With the new money from the new deals we would be able to add more quality to the team. But we have to be very careful. Because as my contact also said, we are living in a world where we had to deal with the massive spending of some clubs. He didn’t name them but we all know who he is talking about.
Because of that massive spending power things will always be more difficult for Arsenal. We just have to live with that. This is something beyond our influence. Only higher authorities can stop this.
But he told me that the board and the manager would do all they could to propel Arsenal forward. The new deals coming in this summer, the team that has been top of the league this season for so long, the fact that we are willing to spend money on the right players who bring extra quality to the team, … it all is happening slowly exactly as I was told at the meeting would happen.
And slowly is the way it will and should happen at Arsenal. We have nothing but ourselves to fall back upon when it should go wrong. So we have to be very careful in what we spend and on whom we spend.
We now already have a team that can compete with the best (or should I say richest) in England and Europe. Even slightly improving our injury record might bring us a lot of extra points (and I do believe they will make changes for this to happen this summer – although that is just my opinon, not something I have been told). Fewer injuries to key players and we could have been still top of the league. Of that I am sure.
I know some people don’t believe the words said by managers or board members. But the things they have said to me in private have been happening since then. And they promised me also that they will do all they can to bring us back to the real top and win things. If they keep that promise it will be even better.
As for now I will do what I always do when it comes to Arsenal: Support my players, the manager, the club. I really do believe that the future is very bright. And even though we might have set backs at some point in time I really believe we will be at the top for a long period of time. Despite a few set backs we had to suffer in that period.
The goals and targets have been set by the board and slowly we are changing our approach and the way the club will behave in the next seasons. I keep the faith, I keep calm. After all, I support The Arsenal.
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- Woolwich Arsenal: The club that changed football – Arsenal’s early years
- Making the Arsenal – how the modern Arsenal was born in 1910
- The Crowd at Woolwich Arsenal
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Great to hear these words coming to fruition. I am guessing I know who your contact is, think he is a good guy to have around. Also reassuring to hear they seem to know exactly what is going on with the media onslaught.
Agree with you , things will be done this summer on the injuries
Really good to read something positive. There’s so much negativity around and that’s just from our own supporters. Look, whether it’s sooner or later, Arsenal will come back. Check the club’s history.
Great to know that we still have staunch believers like you in The Arsenal dream. I know that we are in the majority (less noisy though we are) despite the huge hullabaloo by AAA and their partners in sensationalistic media Jingoism. My dear Nigerian Gooners, are you there?
The world’s greatest ref – or is it “Monty Python presents – The World’s Greatest ref”
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2001232-video-watch-carlos-tevez-stamp-on-fiorentina-goalkeeper-netos-head?utm_source=outbrain.com&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=uk-sports
Marcus, this is amazing. Or well it is not. This is Webb as we know him.
Still have a soft spot for the Old Utd boy inside him I guess….
And before anyone starts using the words ‘he didn’t intend it’ I can tell you that since a few seasons intention doesn’t count. If it is dangerous and reckless and nothing more dangerous and reckless than kicking someone on his head it is a red card.
Good link Marcus, quite an appalling stamp which could have resulted in a serious injury. As for Webb, he should have some explaining to do.
Did you notice a further link which reported that Bayern have banned reporters from the Mirror & the Sun from the replay, based on their distorted reporting of the Schweinsteiger/Rooney incident.
Walter, a very informative and interesting article, it is good to know those in charge of the club are intent on moving the club in the direction that most of the fan base would want. Thanks for sharing this positive news with us.
There is nothing new here . Those words we been hearing from the boss . I have a feeling this is just an analyse of the statments the culb. AmI wright ?
Walter, did your contact have anything to say about some of the refs we get?
dino…….Do you mean am I Ian Wright, or are you unsure who you are? Of course there is nothing new in Walter’s excellent summation of a true Gooner’s credo but so what. Did you expect to hear Wenger say , ¨We are all losers like dino, we are hopeless, the AAA and the media is wright,opps right, and we are doomed to relegation¨? The articleis froma great supporter, who can actually write better English than you can, and by the way, what the f**k are you trying to say here, ¨this is just an analyse of the statments the culb.¨?
I think you have been smoking too many of your daily meals mate!!!
Ramsey is back training and so is Diaby.
That incident (TEVEZ) happened just infront of the extra official. Its a red card. How could he miss that???? Get those dummies out. Waste of money……
Arsenal 13, damn right I wonder who that extra official was….? Anyone?
Hi everyone
Here is what a defender has to say about matches in UEFA.http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/apr/03/erik-hagen-zenit-saint-petersburg-match-fixing
Abhishek Kumar,
Of course we have our article about that ready for you 😉
Nigerian Gooner reporting for duty here Sir Pius.
Walter, thanks for the refreshing article and rallying call to all supporters to follow their job description of “supporting the club, the manager and the players”. No wonder the article on Arsenal.com calling on fans to create an atmosphere at Wembley for the FA cup game. But really, does it have to reach that level?
Good to hear that we are indeed about to address weaknesses in the squad this summer. Equally good to hear is this: “they wouldn’t buy players that would bring a burden to the club”. When we need every penny to compete waste is the last thing that we need. I understand that JD will be leaving us and joining Hamburger SV in a permenant deal which will free up more resources to invest in a top player, add to that the departure of NB52, Park, and maybe one or two more and we have the wages of a wc player covered.
@Walter, it was Gunnersaurus wasn’t it and you found out his real identity. Who is he? Who is that grinning dinosaur?
I must admit I thought Wenger always tried to buy the right players and if he couldn’t find the right players he didn’t bother. Isn’t that what every team does? Obviously it doesn’t always work out for any number of reasons.
Omgarsenal, why is it when anyone dare question the “Arsenal way” you come out with stuff about us being doomed to relegation? Nobody, whatever their stance, believes that nonsense. Unless you mean relegation from the CL?
I happened to see your vapid rant filled with choice expletives on Online Gooner and it got lambasted. I notice you never returned to defend your bout of hysterics.
I hope a certain Hungarian referee gets investigated.
Am glad that the information is more available that Arsenal are following a plan to bring Arsenal back to the top. Clear, for some fans, they just follow the media, and have not learned to make their own opinions, but the others know this is one of the last phases of Arsenal rebuilt, and we can now start to build on attracting the right players for Arsenal.
This summer is going to be a different Arsenal in transfer market. Not meaning we are going to go mad, but Arsenal probably already know who they want, sorted in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and maybe even 4th depending on availability.
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One thing i noticed is that THERE IS NO ARSENAL WAY of playing anymore, EVERYONE and his dog is playing their football this way now. Being Arsenal, no doubt we will come up with something new soon and the rest will follow again if they can.
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If footballing was really fairly reffed Arsenal would have been running away with most of it, and that with the supposedly “non-world-class” players we have. I do wonder if the slump in Arsenal from one week to another is a result of all of this bad reffing and mis-organisation of the footballing bodies.
@rupert
you have some kind of personal issues here, do you?
How old are you, boy?
@Sukebe, who are you, boy? I don’t have any personal issues unlike some on her who seem to cling on to any old conspiracy to justify the club’s collapse every season around March. But I’ll take an FA Cup success as some consolation.
@rupert
“Some consolation” ?
Some people just want to hate….
So you enjoyed your tete a tete with Ivan then?