Be strong enough to be yourself.

55 Replies to “Be strong enough to be yourself.”

1. We are winnig the league sir though a bit disappointed with the result but having gone through this your article am very confident we can go on an unbeating run….like the Liverpool game ,in season past we would have lost it so its a fair result …if you can win don’t lose.

2. Why are you always defending Wenger? I’m sure he’s perfectly capable of doing that himself.

3. Arsenal13,

   Great job pal!

   It good to know that I am not the only one who feel so bad for Arsene when neanderthals mock him or question his ability. Although some idiots will tell us that he deserves all the bullshit because he earns £8m per year but I say he is still the best value-for-money manager in any top European league.

   I love that man and I am never ashamed to declare to the world that he is one of my top 3 role models. Arsene is a phenomenal human being; the type that we should all aspire to be like.

   Whatever the outcome of this season (I’m hoping for the double), Arsene will remain the best Arsenal manager and one of best ever to manage the game in its entire history.

4. “Olivier Giroud has scored 12 goals in 15 league starts and 6 appearances as a substitute” You might also add, 11 in the last 11 away games! He is not good enough is he? Arsenal need a top class center forward. My A..!

5. Frank,
   Because of the constant, mindless, spurious anti-Wenger nonsense spouted in all media. Mr Wenger chooses not to come out and defend himself as he understands full well that this is energy wasted. That leaves the role for supporters capable of independent thought who are able to see through the media agenda.
   I hope this answers the question for you.

6. Great article. And thanks for reminding us of some of those examples of where the manager came in for ridicule and abuse for no good reason. The press should apologise.

7. Well put ClockEndRider, Arsene needn’t dignify them with a response, we should all show our solidarity to Arsene to make any statement unnecessary…

8. ARSENAL 13 – good article. Wenger is truly a role model in his impeccable behaviour. The FA should learn from him & honour him by returning every penny they fined him for pathetic trumped up charges.

   Her Majesty is reportedly an Arsenal fan. I hope she awards Wenger a special honour for his tolerance of racist abuse by the English media.

9. A13

   Excellent.

10. Yep, spot on.

    A lot of people have egg on their faces. It is bizarre that we have a sad group that refuse point blank to praise wneger for anything and blame him for everything. As soon as points are dropped, he is blamed. If we win well, it is credited to the players or the other team playing poorly. Or Steve Bould – remember those classics!!

    Despite the claims we had a thin squad, we are top of the table. We have had key injuries to players like Sanchez, Cazorla and Coquelin but continue picking up points. Never mentioned but we had teh best points total of any team for the 2015 calendar year. We even won the second FA Cup on the spin in 2015.

    But the man still gets abused. The agenda members have decided to join a club that specialise in just being plain nasty. Its no longer about winning for them because even that appears to make them unhappy.

    I was disappointed we dropped those 2 points but that was a gutsy performance. Real entertainment too. We came back twice and that shows real character. Difficult place Anfield, pretty hostile and the conditions were difficult for both teams. The AAA’s mate Giroud, who is shit, proved yet again he is nothing of the sort. Shout out for Campbell who really is proving he deserves his place in the team. You could see Wenger going nuts in the final minutes when we kept giving the ball away cheaply – so was I.

    Man City dropping home points against Everton just shows how unoredictable and difficult this league is – same with Leicester winning at Spurs. Just shows what a great result we pulled off at leicester winning 5-2, which interestingly never gets a mention.

    We roll onto Stoke and their disrespectful fans Sunday.

11. Mohammed Elneny officially confirmed !!

    Welcome to Arsenal !

    Or as it is said in Arabic “أهلا وسهلا” (Ahlan wa sahlan) Welcome !

12. Good article.

    One of the things that makes me laugh about the whingers is when they use the idiotic line about madness is when you do the same thing and expect different results. All that does is show how little they understand about the game itself, tactics and player development….. No game is ever the same. It may look similar sometimes but it’s always different. Maybe the ref blows up for a foul that wouldn’t have been called in the similar game, whether the ball hits a divot and bounces differently or whether one single player is ‘based’ 2 yards forward and 1 yard further infield. Add to this that all the players have a further 1 games experience. There is no such thing as the same game or the same thing in football, even if the results were to end up being the same….

13. Great read 13. I was a bit surprised he was asked about Bowie, but apparently, he does talk on quite a lot of issues at his press conference, but, as a huge fan of both, was very impressed with his response on Bowie…he certainly seems to get the recently departed legend.
    And welcome Elneny, and if John Cross is to be believed, much sought after Nigerian youngsters Kelechi Nwakali and Sam Chukwueze

14. Great article Arsenal13! I hope you can change your name soon to Arsenal 14 😉

15. Good post Arsenal 13. To attempt to answer your question (not that it needed to be answered 🙂 ) about what he has done to deserve so much hate – he is French.

16. Like/Dislike not working.

    Frankantz
    January 14, 2016 at 8:17 am

    -1 (Dislike)

17. ‘Mr Wenger was ridiculed for saying top 4 was ‘like’ a trophy. A man who built the modern ARSENAL was declared no good enough for the new age football. He was tactically inept. He wouldn’t let Bould do defensive coaching. He was laughed at for a slip inside the railway station. He was hounded by the very people who call themselves fans for not winning a football game. They even laugh at him for his inability to smoothly zip his jackets.’

    Thank you for remembering this, and more. Wenger will be revered long into the future, but his time here has been completely shat on by the ‘majority’. I hope he continues to stick a middle finger up to these people with plenty of shiny new trophies before he decides to go.

    Also, i’ve said this before, but the culture of anti-football/pro negative-hype in this country has surely hurt the England team over the years?

18. Mr. Wenger’s eloquence never ceases to amaze me. I’m convinced no other football man could come up with truer or more appropriate words on the spot if asked about Bowie.

    In football news, Real and Atletico Madrids have been handed transfer bans for being themselves and trafficking kids. It seems the Spanish league has some bad habits indeed.

19. Vinnie L, That’s interesting news about RM & AM. I guess that also means neither of them will be selling any of their players to us (or anyone) for the next year or so…..

20. Great Artcile Arsenal 13…

    I’ve often times come to the conclusion that those who disrespect or deride Arsene Wenger are little-minded individuals. Le Prof is not just a great manager, he’s a great mind. A genius in every ramification.

    He knew he had a team that won the FA Cup and Community Shield back-to-back…he knew their individual qualities and knew equally that the team would even improve in confidence and quality. He signed Petr Cech because the 33-year old suddenly became available.

    He knew only injuries could derail this team from being real contenders and zipped the purse shut on signings. I suspect he was hoping to be within tracks of likes of Chelsea, City and United(the pundits tips before kick off) by this January…then added some players according to where injuries hit him most. As it is, Mohammed Elneny will start playing immediately until Le Coq comes back. Within the month or thereabout, the Egyptian must have contributed significantly to the cause. If he was signed to sit on the bench till Coquelin’s injury…the ex-Basel star could have lost confidence by now. Besides, how could he have been certain Coq would be the one not available by January?

    I’m sure he would have gone for a striker had Giroud or Walcott been the one injured long term. As it stands, I am very positive that if it comes to it, Joel Campbell can effectively lead the line. With Welbeck expected back soon…I think Wenger will wait till the coming summer to think of a striker…unless if one becomes suddenly available, and it must be real quality at that, then Wenger may spend just for next season.

    Luckily, there’s no worry in defense and his astute way of always giving Gibbs some playing time is to get him ready for any injury to Monreal. Gabriel is ever ready and competent to step in. So, he shouldn’t bother with his defense this January.

    So, whoever is expecting Wenger to sign any other player this window could end up disappointed. Knowing Wenger, he is certain he has a team to win this title…and I believe him.

    Back to the match…With the way Liverpool came at us in the first 20 minutes, that 5 -1 agony quickly came to mind. But the way we battled back and eventually took the lead can only be described as champions’ stuff. Though I was so disappointed we eventually dropped two points but, as a fan of football, did Liverpool deserve to lose? Not with the great brand of football they dished out. Credit to who deserves it…a draw was perfect justice.

21. Thierryhenry22

    You said: “Also, i’ve said this before, but the culture of anti-football/pro negative-hype in this country has surely hurt the England team over the years?”

    I say: Spot on comment. When Wenger arrived, English football was so backward it was embarrassing. He ripped apart the neanderthal culture and took on the drinkers and over eaters. He has never been forgiven in certain quarters for that or for taking on the power of footballs biggest ever bully, Ferguson.

    Probably the only manager to have earned success and not bought it by outspending his rivals.

    English football owes Wenger so much. But that means admitting the entire attitude we have to football in this Country has been outdated for forty years – that is notgoing to be allowed to be acknowledged. After all, getting pissed is clever and leaving your studs on the shin of a player better than you is to be applauded. Passing the ball around is tippy tappy and to be sneered at and ridiculed.

22. Mr Wenger literally lives football. I think this question on Bowie was intended to be cheeky(may be wrong here), but the reply stumped them big time.

    But the irony is the people, now, who praised Mr Wenger for the quote (it should be one of best Wenger quotes) don’t give the eff about the message he passed on.

23. 24 dislikes! Yikes, I only asked.
    Some cranky old men on this site obviously.

24. Arsenal 13 2:04 The question on Bowie was posed by a Sky reporter – http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/10126644/arsene-wenger-pays-tribute-to-inspirational-david-bowie.

25. Frankantz.

    24 dislikes, what on earth did you say to all us evil, cranky old men Frank?!

    Mind you. I’ld Count yourself lucky……….. You see, I visited a wob blog once and dared to make a polite comment that disagreed with the main thrust of the convo. That particular blog didn’t have a dislike button – instead it had a group of Social Psychopaths with a challenged intellect, self moderating the blog.

    I received a plethora of abuse which was pretty eye opening and educational. I recall that my parentage was questioned, assumptions were made about my sexual orientation and accusations were made regarding what I use my wrist for. It was recommended that I should go forth and multiply, something I must admit I am not totally adverse to – it can be fun. Come to think of it, there was a range of suggestions about what I could do with various objects around the home, inclduing vegetables and table legs.

    So in the scheme of things Frank, if I can call you Frank, 24 dislikes from a bunch of cranky old men is really quite a compliment. Let me tell you, it beats the hell out of spending an entire evening trying to establish whether or not it is possible to navigate a range of foreign objects into ones body; I can assure you of that.

26. Nicely worded Proudkev. David Cameron better look out.

27. Gord

    Cheers (I think). Wet Dave should send me over to the social psychopaths housed in that European Union building – I’ll sort that bunch of halfwits out. That lot are about as much use as a WOB in a Supporters Club.

    As for Angela Merkel, I may have some of those vegetables left……….

28. Kev, (if I may call you that) thanks for putting it into perspective. I can see now that the dislikes are actually expressions of endearment. Although I am curious as to how many dislikes I’d get if I were to pose the question who is likely to succeed Wenger?

29. Who is likely to succeed Wenger, now that is a very interesting question for the team, fans, media, rivals, and I am sure the club…in no special order
    My guess, and it is only a guess, is that if things go well this season and the next, he will sign on for another three years at the end of his contract, and perhaps get a successor ready, but who knows.
    A choice they need to get right, but hopefully not one to be made for a while, as Wenger staying will mean the man is in good health, things are going well on the pitch and within the club, and we keep a truly elite manager… and for a while at least do not have to go through the trials and tribulations suffered by another club who have recently lost a very long serving, and successful manager.
    I am sure most get far more than dislikes on here, and I keep encouraging Walter to publish some of the moderated posts…but can well see why he and Tony do no such thing!

30. I wonder if any of those objects was a convex hull? Which has nothing to do with Hull City, or their Tigers football team.

    The area of England is 130,000 square kilometers (and some change). The EPL and football can be reasonably be expected to have lesser extent than England, but since Swansea (Wales) is in the league, any area derived from English football can be expected to have some Wales in it.

    Up to the conclusion of gameday 20, the set of referees used by 😈 Mike Riley of the PGMO comprised the 17 Select Group and 31 of 62 National Group referees.

    The Select Group is bounded by a convex hull of 6 points covering about 24,000 square kilometers. The center of this area is at (571 786,5 898 855). These are WGS-84 UTM coordinates.

    The half of the National Group the 😈 Mike Riley has used, is bounded by a convex hull of 9 points and almost 72,000 square kilometer area. The half of the National Group that 😈 Mike Riley hadn’t used is bounded by a convex hull of 7 points and almost 73,500 square kilometers.

    If we plot these 3 points on a map, the PGMO centroid is in the Peak District National Park (under a Top Secret sign), while the 2 National Groups are near Birmingham. The part 😈 Mike Riley has used is NEE of Birmingham (slightly E of Coventry), while the other half is almost due E of Birmingham and slightly west of Coventry.

    But it does seem like everything 😈 Mike Riley touches, moves north.

    As for the contention that the referees that 😈 Mike Riley has to choose from are limited to the north, this is obviously hogwash. Both halves of the National Group cover nearly all of England (and are underestimated, as the outer “half” of County FAs on the boundary won’t be counted) and have centroids similar to the centroid of England. Mike Riley 😈 has the group he does, because he willfully chose it.

    It might be interesting to closely examine the partition of the National Group created by 😈 Mike Riley, to see in what ways the two groups are different. Are there non-Caucasian referees in the National Group? Immigrants? Other minorities?

31. Frankantz.

    Thats a fairly worded quaetion and I would be happy to discuss that.

    Look, all that isnt appreciated is when we get visits from the extremist elements who only come on to slag off wenger and the players. I cant speak for the rest on here but personally that is not my idea of how support works. Its fine to not to not like thye manager, absolute right to hold that view, but not to abuse him.

    However, you may not agree with the views on here but the contributors here are a lot politer and more respectful. You wont get anyone here wishing death on people or calling people disgusting names. So behave respectfully, dont goad or abuse and you are welcome as far as I am concerned, wenger fan or not.

32. Fair enough. I honestly have not come here to goad or slag off Wenger. I don’t always agree with his management of the team, and I personally think he should be doing better in Europe after all these years, but I can see the utter transformational effect he’s had on not just this club, but the English game in general. None of that is in question. The problem is he is getting older (and crankier) and if the club don’t want to do a United I hope they’re asking themselves the same question. There is nothing wrong with putting the guy on an altar, but it shouldn’t blunt our ambition or blind us to what comes after. Yes Arsenal fans can be spoilt brats, but they don’t all want to get rid of Wenger.

33. Off topic I thought some of the authors on here may find the fact I must have looked like a nutter this afternoon in the pub because i was reading the sun and saw 5 things we learn’t today with regard to liverpool and arsenal following the match last night and i nearly choked on my pint i was laughing that much .

    thanks for the giggles

34. Well, maybe I have played around with my numbers enough to get some more headway on that article. Still looking for advice on images sizes, and types of image formats. I am sure you don’t want SVG.

    If a person looks at all the possible distances between stadia and County FA headquarters that can happen, there are lots of repeats. Every team occurs 20 times in the first 20 games. Some FAs have more than 1 referee on either the Select Group list, or the National Group list.

    There are also distances in the system, that do not correspond to any referee or 4th official appearing at a game. Actually, most distances fall into that category.

    The minimum distance observed is about 3.2km, and there are quite a few distances seen under 20 or so kilometers. In data I put up yesterday, I think ManCity had officials from about 34km on more than 1 occasion.

    The maximum distance observed was 513km, which is less than the distance from Berwick-Upon-Tweed to Penzance (675km ?). The mean distance is 193km and the median distance is 185km. The standard deviation is 109km, with a skewness of 0.32 and a kurtosis of -0.54. Sorry, I don’t know what you do with skewness or kurtosis. impress people at parties?

    Percentile levels: 5%(33.5km), 25%(106km), 75%(269km) and 95%(396km). I already gave you the 50%, it is also called the median.

35. Frankatz…………we are either cranky old men or just bemused young supporters, both being equally welcome on UA. I think you asked your question in all innocence and indeed the answer is yes he can but he NEVER descends to the media’s level, from day 1 when he embarrassed them so completely in front of Highbury to his comments about David Bowie.
    If you read the masthead for this site you’ll notice that we take on the mantle of supporting the Club, the players and the manager and that means we defend him and sometimes positively criticize him when required, but always in a respectful and dignified manner, just like his style.

    Hope that helps you understand our approach to all things Arsenal.

36. @ ARSENAL 13 – A very big like from me . AW has done a great job and will hopefully continue doing so for a long time to come. And I believe that most of us cranky old men do appreciate and approve of his methods .
    Up the Gunners !

37. And why do we go cranky – let me count the ways !

    The Alphabet For Seniors:

    A’s for arthritis,
    B’s the bad back,
    C’s the chest pains, perhaps car-di-ac?

    D is for dental decay and decline,
    E is for eyesight, can’t read that top line!
    F is for fissures and fluid retention,
    G is for gas which I’d rather not mention.

    H is for high blood pressure – I’d rather it low;
    I for incisions with scars you can show.
    J is for joints, out of socket, won’t mend,
    K is for knees that crack when they bend.

    L ‘s for libido, what happened to sex?
    M is for memory, I forget what comes next.
    N is neuralgia, in nerves way down low;
    O is for osteo, bones that don’t grow!

    P for prescriptions, I have quite a few,

    just give me a pill and I’ll be good as new!

    Q is for queasy, is it fatal or flu?

    R is for reflux, one meal turns to two.

    S is for sleepless nights, counting my fears,
    T is for Tinnitus, bells in my ears!
    U is for urinary, troubles with flow,
    V for vertigo, that’s ‘dizzy,’ you know.

    W for worry, now what’s going ’round?
    X is for X ray, and what might be found.
    Y for another year I’m left here behind,

    Z is for zest I still have – in my mind!

38. What AKBs think of ‘them’ – an alphabetical compendium of the expressions of sincere insults as well as our genuine, heartfelt feelings of contempt.
    Please take it to heart !

    A- ASNINE -( adjective -foolish, unintelligent, or silly; stupid: of or like an ass ) .

    B- BERK – ( noun , slang – a stupid person; fool )

    C- CUCKOLD – ( noun – the husband of an unfaithful wife.)

    D- DUMMKOPF – ( noun – a stupid person; dumbbell; blockhead.)

    E- ERSATZ -(adjective -serving as a substitute; synthetic; artificial)

    F -FUCKWIT -( noun , slang- a fool or idiot)

    G -GONER – (noun, -a person or thing that is dead, lost, or past recovery.)

    H -HINDQUARTER – ( the rear part of an animal. )

    I – IDIOT – ( noun -Informal. an utterly foolish or senseless person)

    J – JERK – ( Slang. a contemptibly naive, fatuous, foolish, or inconsequential person.)

    K – KOOK -( noun, Slang. an eccentric, strange, or foolish person.)

    L – LOUSE -( Slang. a contemptible person, especially an unethical one.)

    M – MORON – ( noun – a person who is notably stupid or lacking in good
    judgement .)

    N -NUMBSKULL- ( noun – a dull-witted or stupid person; dolt.)

    O – ORNERY – (adjective -ugly and unpleasant in disposition or temper)

    P -PIPSQUEAK -( noun,-a contemptibly small or unimportant person; a twerp.)

    Q- QUISLING – (noun -a traitor who aids an occupying enemy force; collaborator).

    R -ROUGHNECK – ( noun – a rough, coarse person; a tough.)

    S – SHITHEAD – ( noun, Slang: Vulgar.- a stupid, inept, unlikable, or contemptible person.)

    T – TOMFOOLERY – ( noun -foolish or silly behavior; tomfoolishness.)

    U- USELESS – adjective -of no use; not serving the purpose , unavailing or futile, of no practical good )

    V – VEXATIOUS – (adjective – troublesome; annoying, disorderly; confused; troubled.)

    W- WISHY-WASHY -( adjective – lacking in decisiveness; without strength or character; irresolute.)

    Y – YAW – ( noun -a movement of deviation from a direct course .)

    Z – ZANY – ( adjective-.1. ludicrously or whimsically comical; clownish.
    noun,
    a secondary stock character in old comedies who mimicked his master.
    a professional buffoon; a clown; a silly person; simpleton ; a slavish attendant or follower.

    Please feel free to add on to this list .

39. Ha Ha. Actually I have half of those so perhaps I’m turning cranky too!

40. Frankantz
    You wont get very far asking those sort of questions on this site.I would love for Arsenal to win the premiership and then step aside and persuade Pep Guardiola to take charge of Arsenal.He is tactically the best manager out there and would elevate Arsenal to another level whilst still playing sublime football.Something im not sure Arsene can do.

41. yes John come in when its financially more stable

42. John.

    For years Wenger not only had to somehow act as an accountant and balance the books but he did so while other clubs were going nuts on spending. Investing up to a billion quid nett is going to give somebody one hell of an advantage. Especailly when a rival is developing players on their behalf and constantly having to sell players. An inconvenient truth but a truth nonetheless.

    Wenger deserves to benefit now that the financial position of the club means he no longer has to sell players or speculate on prospects.

    He started with Ozil, added Sanchez and thsi season Cech. These are players out of our reach previously.

    Seems that some fans have a complete blindspot and live in a coccoon of denial about where we were financially. Otherwise you would think it only fair Wenger gets the opportunity to finally compete on a more even financial plain, having been largely responsible for it while most other managers would have buggered off.

    I look back to the pre-wenger years fondly but since his arrival this club has been completely transformed. From a shared training facilty with the local University and a 40,000 seater stadium to the maginifient training facility and stadium we now have. From bottom half and regular mid table finishes to never finishing outside the top 4 (top 2 pre-stadium) an unbeaten league season and twice as many doubles too. I will never understand why fans are so mdisrespectful to him. The bloke has never been given the kind of money managers like Ancellotti, Mourinho, Guardiola, LVG, Pellegrini, Mancini etc have been handed yet this is conveniently forgotten. Managers that spend big at the biggest clubs get put onto pedestals.

    I live in a modest property paid for out of the income I have earned over these years, while bringing up two kids who are now grown up and trying to make ends meet themselves.

    I do not live in a mansion nor do I own a Ferrari. This is not because I am ‘tight’ with my money or because I am ‘senile’. It is simply basic economics. It seems to me that some fans live in cloud bloody cuckoo land! Well good luck with the mansion and the Ferrari.

43. Proudkev
    It shouldnt be down to the manager to act as an accountant,chief scout etc .His job is to manage the team.Like i said i hope he wins the premier league this year and goes out on a high.I havent seen anything though in Europe to suggest he is tactically good enough to win the champions league.Guardiola has proved time and time again ,albeit with money,that he is.

44. John.

    Behave. I never said he had to be an accountant, the point was he can only spend what he has available.

    I’m not an accounant but I make sure I do not spend more than I earn. My wifes not an accountant, she only spends what we can afford. I have never been made a bankrupt and persoanlly I am grateful Arsenal took their approach to grow the club and not the gamble Leeds United took (and a lot of our fans would).

    The fact Wenger is criticised for not winning the CL ahead of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Man City, Chelsea and PSG while he was having to break even with the stadium move is really a back handed compliment to the man.

45. Proudkev
    We have had financial stability now for the past 3 seasons and we are still no closer to winning the CL than we were when paying the stadium debt off.And you said he can only spend what he has available.Well some might say that he isnt doing that.I hope and prey for a miracle against barcelona over 2 legs but like last years debale against monaco i think the last 16 is about as far as Arsene can take us sadly.

46. John.

    I have realistic expectations. Those clubs have spent years accumulating the very best players. To be successful in the Champions League you need to have a strong squad, especially if you are an English team. The demands in the Premier League are unlike no other. Look at Bayern, they play in a league only one team is ever likely to win so they dont have the same intensity. The same is true of La Liga, where its a slower game and there are a plethora of ‘easier’ games. Not teh case in the Premier League mate.

    Look, Arsenal have been playing catch up. You dont build a team in one year it takes a period of time. Since we had money we bought two world class players in Ozil and Sanchez and bought another in Cech this season. Look at the Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern squads.

    Look at what Man City have spent and the playewrs they have had yet how they have struggled in the Champiuons League. How much have Manchester United spent. Chelsea won the league and look at them now.

    This is not fantasy football so you have to be realistic. If you think we should have won the CL in the last three years and the only reason we doidnt is because of Wenger, fair enough. But I woudl say your expectation level is not realistic.

47. John.

    PS: If we get players back and beat Barca, I will start dreaming!

48. We could have signed someone else in summer and it could have made a difference, of course it could have been a negative one. Manu have signed some very expensive additions and they’ve barely paid back a quarter of their value. As to Wenger sacrificing his life for us I find that bizarre hyperbole. The man earns a fortune. I don’t begrudge him that. But what makes you think he’s sacrificed anything? I believe he thinks he can drive Arsenal on to greater glories and that’s why he’s stayed. We’re not some small club, we have the potential to be as big as almost anyone and I think Wenger believes that hence his disregard for jobs at Barca, Real Madrid etc. Those clubs might guarantee glory but they also frequently sack managers even when they are doing well. Wenger has had the sense to stay put and not risk being buffeted from one so called giant to another. He thinks he can make Arsenal the best in the world. Perhaps you doubt that.

49. Kev
    I didnt say that we should of won the champions league in the last 3 years but we were told we had to move from highbury to the emirates to compete with the likes of Barca ,Real and Byern. In reality we are even further away from them now than when we were at our old ground.Also i hope elneny proves me wrong and turns out to be a great signing but he will hardly have any of the big boys worried.

50. Yellow canary.

    Pretty much.

    What I often find baffling is the comments I often hear that claim ‘Wenger doesnt want to win’. Thsi is a man at teh very top of his profession that has proved to be a pretty bad loser. He has had huge success, was unfortunate against Barca losing Lehmann after just 18 mins and could have left to earn far more with another club. he would also have had an unlimited budget.

    For whatever reason he bucked the trend and agreed to help us throuigh the rebuilding. In his interview before the FA Cup Final with Gabby Logan, he said that his biggest achievement in football was keeping Arsenal top 4 when he had no money. he also said that had he known how difficult it wowas going to be, that he probably wouldn’t have done it.

    The problem we have nowadays is that nobody seems to respect loyalty. Respect, per say, has virtually disappeared too.

    In a football world that demands instant success, bought with a cheque book, Wengers style of managment and his loyalty is alien. The difficulty he went through is under appreciated and that I think is down to ignorance and the appalling media.

    The arrival of fantasy football games and computer simulation has created a breed of football fan, that do genuinely believe that football management in the real world is similar. We shoudl sign him, we should sell him etc its all assumption based managment. As you say, there are lots of examples of players that had big reputatiuons and big transfer fees who failed.

    Having watched some of the rubbish Arsenal teams in the past dished up and a lot of pretty dire football, I am eternally grateful for teh loyalty Mr. Wenger demosntrated. Had he not hung around during the restrictions, I have no doubt we would be nowehere near where we are now and woudl probably not be in the strong financial position we are now in. Just my opinion but I just can’t see it.

51. Proudkev
    Wenger might have a bigger budget with another club ,but with that he would be under pressure to get results and trophys.There isnt the same pressure at Arsenal and i can give you 8 million reasons why he stays loyal.

52. Why is it that there are people who just love to piss on other people’s parades? If one is unhappy or offended , why don’t you just grin and bear it and keep it to yourself ? You might just get your just deserts one day !

    Just like did Cavin Rickson , who just couldn’t leave well alone …..

    http://www.fordgtforum.com/forums/showthread.php/20484-Texas-A-amp-M-scientist-invents-new-bra-almost-dies

    Dr. Calvin Rickson, a scientist from Texas A&M University has invented a bra that keeps women’s breasts from jiggling, bouncing up and down, and prevents the nipples from pushing through the fabric when cold weather sets in.

    At a news conference, after announcing the invention, a large group of men took Dr. Rickson outside and kicked the shit out of him.

53. The prescription –

    A nice, calm and respectable lady went into the pharmacy, walked up to the pharmacist, looked straight into his eyes, and said, “I’d like to buy some cyanide”.

    The pharmacist asked, “Why in the world do you need cyanide”?

    The lady replied, “I need it to poison my husband”.

    The pharmacist’s eyes got big and he explained, “Lord have mercy! I can’t give you cyanide to kill your husband, that’s against the law. I’ll lose my license! They’ll throw both of us in jail! All kinds of bad things will happen. Absolutely not! You CANNOT have any cyanide. Just get a divorce!”

    The lady reached into her purse and pulled out a picture of her husband in bed with the pharmacist’s wife.

    The pharmacist looked at the picture and said, “You didn’t tell me you had a prescription!”

54. Kev…

    No matter how you drum it some ‘fans’ won’t hear the music. Pathetic. But they’ll all appreciate Wenger when he’s gone.

    To win a Champions League is not just a three-year affair. You thought Benitez won it for Liverpool? Think again…he did with Houllier’s team that was built around Gerard at his peak.

    Avram Grant was a John Terry’s kick away from winning it with Chelsea. Is Grant any coach to have even played in the final?

    Teams are built gradually, not in one swoop. For Wenger to start thinking of the UCL, he first must win the EPL…when he does, he now adds to his team, if and where necessary, to go for UCL…today, that we have Ozil, Sanchez and Cech is a sign we are finally ready to compete at the highest level. That we have Monreal, Koscielny, Giroud, Ramsey are rewards for Wenger’s belief in taking on unknowns and making them great players. That we have Carzola is a sure sign for Wenger sporting talent and pouncing at the right time. That we have Wilshere, Coquelin, Bellerin, Campbell is Wenger’s hawk-eye ability of identifying talented youths early and giving them chances to blossom.

    Wenger didn’t add any outfield player and they all slated him. He didn’t because he knew what winning the FA Cup back-to-back has done in uplifting confidence. He is with the players every day and understands their individual abilities. Today, he’s the first manager of top team to add outfield player this window because he truly needed one. Why is he not being praised? Oh, I forgot…because Elneny didn’t cost 40 mil!

    Believe me, if we win this season’s title…this team will even improve further. You won’t believe the level players like Campbell, Bellerin, Coquelin would jump to. I’m almost certain that Welbeck will end up our Aubemeyang once he gets a run without further long lay offs.

    After this season, players like Per, Arteta, Flamini, Rosicky may no longer offer much in playing time…how Wenger replaces these four will be the key to our UCL challenge. Will he go for a monster of a CB to replace per? Has Elneny already replaced the duo of Flamini and Arteta? Will Iwobi or Jeff replace Arteta? We’ll know by this summer. But whoever is talking of Wenger retiring after this season is being very unfair. Arsenal MUST give Wenger the chance to win the one trophy a great manager like him should – the UCL.

55. BG…

    You’ll make me crack up my ribs very soon!