Arsenal Chairman Sir Chips Keswick confirmed today in a rather unusual step by saying that a ‘mutual decision’ will be taken on Arsene Wenger’s future, especially after the Frenchman’s latest results. Wenger and Arsenal succumbed to another Champions League exit in the last 16 stage, after being thrashed 5-1 by Bayern Munich which sealed a 10-2 aggregate defeat.
This was preceded by losses to Liverpool, again to Bayern at the Allianz, Chelsea and a 1-2 defeat to Watford. The Arsenal manager has been at the helm for over 20 years and is currently in his final few months of his contract with his future still up in the air.
Keswick in a statement that was hidden in the depths of Arsenal’s website said, “We are fully aware of the attention currently focused on the club and understand the debate. We respect that fans are entitled to their different individual opinions but we will always run this great football club with its best long-term interests at heart. Arsene has a contract until the end of the season. Any decisions will be made by us mutually and communicated at the right time in the right way.”
What all this diplomacy does, is back up the decision that the board had already made in the morning, when they said that they want Wenger to practically reinvent himself and show the club that he can achieve something more than a fourth place finish and a round of 16 stage in the Champions League.
And the atmosphere is torn up about it – when I say atmosphere, I say fans and they can never decide whether they want Arsene Wenger to stay or to go. Here are a few tweets that epitomise the reaction from the Arsenal faithful.
Even John Cross had something nice to say...
Arsenal’s greatest ever “fan” has his word put in the mix...
