Now will you stay, RvP? Gooners are listening!

So Mr. Arsene Wenger, apart from gifting Arsenal consecutive trophy less seasons, has also been drawing flak from his critics for quite a number of other reasons as well.

One major reason is leaving the finance box of the Arsenal management unused and unopened throughout seasons. To answer that, last season, Everton midfielder Mikel Arteta was landed at the Emirates. To further fill the gaping hole, Yossi Benayoun was brought on for a season long loan deal. The towering figure of Per Mertesacker was also an addition who disappointed badly, remaining injured during a major part of the season. Apart from these few names, there weren’t any major signings last season. As usual, the drought of trophies continued that time as well. This time, quite strikingly, the story has been different.

After a fantastic season with Arsenal, and being the top goal scorer last season, the Dutchman, van Persie seems to be the most sought after deal this season. With one year left on his contract, it was quite obvious that there would be talks of contract extension, and the demands of the prolific striker would be quite challenging, to say the least. As predicted, it is so, and van Persie is almost on the verge of leaving the Emirates, and moving on to some better paying clubs. Experts have been saying that it is the best time for the striker to find a club that rewards his talent with an equal proportion of silverware. They believe, at Arsenal, with the lacklustre performance and the youth policy of Mr. Wenger, trophies are hard to come by. Amazingly, it is seen, Arsenal is in the news this time with regard to the activities in the transfer market. First the German striker Lukas Podolski was signed. Next, another prolific goal scoring personality, Olivier Giroud was snapped up by Arsenal. Then the Spanish winger Santi Cazorla, and talks are on with a host of other players, viz. Nuri Sahin, Yann m’Villa, etc.

So this time it’s an entire different approach that Wenger has adopted. He is signing, and signing with vigour. The youth policy is still there, but now it seems a right balance of stars and youth. The talks are doing the rounds that all these are an attempt at damage control to the squad after the probable exit of van Persie. The players that Arsenal has signed till now are undoubtedly the best in the business. However, this recent trend of Wenger launching a signing spree seems more of a hunt for trophies, and not filling the gap, but aimed at retaining the services of the Dutch striker. Big names have departed citing the reason of lack of trophies and lackadaisical attitude towards signing better players in order to build a strong team.

This time, it feels different. These signings are not mere replacements for the exit of the big names, but they are an attempt to retain the existing strike force. Thus, contrary to popular belief, Arsene Wenger is wisely distributing the cash resources this time. Not only is he signing big names, he is also, at the same time, shutting down the excuse of the so called big named players who are willing to move on to bigger clubs that promise them trophies with an impressive line-up of star players. With these in mind, the Gunners hope, this time, the tale will be different. The football world will be waiting now for the critics to gun down Mr. Wenger with a separate set of allegations.

All the best Monsieur Wenger. We are there with you!