Why the Gunners should show some more faith and patience in Wenger

Arsenal players celebrate winning the Premiership in 2004.

Arsene Wenger, the man who led a formidable Arsenal side to their best ever season, a season which earned them the tag of “Invincibles”, is now facing the ire of the Arsenal supporters after a series of disappointing results. Tweets, Facebook statuses, long articles and a lot more of criticism from the frustrated Arsenal fans adds up to the pressure that the Frenchman is facing, but is it apt to act like this to a man whom Sir Alex Ferguson once termed one of the most toughest managers he’s come across?

Clearly the North London side are in some sort of crisis, not only in terms of the football on the field, but also off the field with Gazidis breathing down Wenger’s neck. Wenger termed Gazidis a man who seemed to be more concerned about the balance sheets than the team sheet. Stan Kroenke has been a stern shareholder and has limited Arsenal’s transfer kitty to a great extent. With all their backs turned towards Wenger, is it right to hate him?

With great credit to the North London side, they stand second on the table of the all time standings ever since the English Premier League came into existence. Apart from Manchester United, Arsenal are the only team that have stamped their authority in the league with style and substance. The likes of Bergkamp, Henry, Pires, Viera, Kanu, Overmars and Ljungberg all donned the red jersey of London and have pleased the fans alike.

The ‘Invincibles’ may seem to be a long time ago, 2003-04 to be precise, but it definitely is something that every Gooner can be proud of.

Ever since then, Arsenal have produced some great talent over the years, and have also brought talents onto the big stage. The likes of Kolo Toure, Sagna, Clichy, Fabregas, Nasri and Ashley Cole to name a few, were all an integral part of the side from London.

The mastermind behind all this? None other than Wenger.

However, the only problem with Arsenal players remains their commitment to the club. The Manchester City take-over by Sheikh Mansour is said to have lead to the downfall of Arsenal as a major contender. Nasri, Clichy, Toure and Adebayor, a few important first team names of the Arsenal squad, all put pen to paper with the wealthy Eastlands side, hoping to earn a trophy which they felt wouldn’t have been possible at Arsenal. Cesc Fabregas’ transfer request to join Barcelona brought serious questions on Arsenal’s ability to keep hold of their top players. And recently, the Robin van Persie saga ended with the Dutch heart-throb signing for rivals Manchester United. Theo Walcott also looks set to leave the Emirates, come this January transfer window.

As a critic, the only word that can come to one’s mind with regard to this issue is ‘helpless’, because that’s exactly how Wenger has been feeling as he sees his stars turn their backs to him.

All alone?

Keeping that in mind, Arsene did make amends, with smart signings of Arteta, Carzola, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Gervinho, but what Arsenal lacks is the winning mentality, a situation which was faced by Jürgen Klopp when he took over at Dortmund, a club which was in the jaws of bankruptcy, but the fans kept faith and believed in him, and he delivered!

Arsenal’s start to last season’s campaign was disastrous, which was clearly highlighted at the 8-2 loss at Old Trafford. But he steadied the ship, and ensured Arsenal finished third. Which is very much an achievement in itself, considering the fact that a few Arsenal faithfuls were questioning their teams progress to next years Champions League.

The pressure on Arsene in the last campaign was immense, but he stood up to it and delivered. Isn’t that managerial material?

And that feat of his demands immense respect! Being able to perform under pressure with all your key players turning their backs towards you is quite remarkable. I, being a United fan, have immense respect for the Frenchman!

With a success rate of 53.40, he definitely knows how to manage a club.

So Gooners, keep faith in him and he’ll deliver! After all, he isn’t known as “Le Professeur” for no reason. For at times like this, it isn’t Arsenal, but Arsene that needs more of your support. Here’s hoping to a better future for Arsenal.