Arsenal capitulating NOT a new thing

[boundngag]

Why are the media talking about Arsenal's tendency to capitulate like it's a new thing? It's being going on for years! Something goes against them in a game and it's as if they collectively think 'It's not our day today, we can't do anything about this' and proceed to give up. Is there any other supposedly top team that capitulates as often or as easily as Arsenal? I doubt it! There's only one place that can emanate from - the manager. Somehow he seems to drain players of confidence and make them think it's ok to give up. Refusing to criticise players and saying things like finishing in 4th is an achievement clearly don't help.

He once said that if the fans wanted him to go, he'd go. Well, what fans want him to stay? The ones that are still in awe of him somehow, can't bear to criticise him and do pretty much what he tells them? Imho, Mr Wenger, Ivan Gazidis and Stan Kroenke do not count as the majority of Arsenal fans!!!!!

[John]

It's the same old story unfortuantely. Dithering and indecision (esp in the Jan transfer window) is a hallmark Wenger of the last few years. the way the team have capitualted in recent "Big Games" has been nothing short of shocking. Everton on Saturday will be a crucial game if Arsenal want 4th place but the way they're playing, it looks a tough ask to beat a resurgent Everton.

[boundngag]

We'll probably lose to Everton the way we're playing at the moment. The thing is the capitulations are not new, but seem to happen more regularly against the top team and when they do happen, they're more severe. The thing that really irritates me about the January transfer window was there was no reason not to sign a striker. The other teams are not as strong as they have been in previous years, Arsenal had plenty of money in the bank and were actually in a good position in the league in January. So Wenger might have to pay a bit over the odds for a striker. So what? Stories come out a while after that what he was quibbling over was a few million, like when he didn't sign Juan Mata. Why does Wenger think this is good management? We won't win the league again under Wenger and we'll probably finish outside the top 4and blow it in the F.A Cup as well now!

We'll probably beat Everton easily and win the F.A Cup now, just to make me look really stupid. It's just I don't see what Wenger's achieving from continuing. We don't look like we're able to compete and the times we do, we always blow it. Arsenal are just stagnating, going round in circles. Thierry Henry says we should be careful what we wish for, but how many teams capitulate as readily and easily and how many managers spend more effectively in the transfer market? Imho, it's very straightforward now - a lot of managers could do a better job at Arsenal than Arsene Wenger is. The worrying thing is, Wenger seems to be getting progressively worse and seems to be completely oblivious to this.

[draggerman]

Yes, you were right, Everton beat us finally 2-0. But that's nth in comparison to the games with 6 goals against each, that shocked me at least. But i surely am confused: you do not send away a manager that has transformed in such a way a team. Would you risk a change making the team again a mediocrity? Let's wait a little more i say. Wenger has offered to much, to be ignored so easily.

[boundngag]

I think it's very unlikely there will be any improvement. The decline has been on-going for nice years. He no longer seems to have man management skills; otherwise the players confidence would not be so brittle and they would not capitulate so easily. He was never tactically that good, but not when the game doesn't go well, he just seems to sit there and accept it. He seems unable to adapt his tactics to the situation in the game now. In the transfer market, yes he signed Ozil this summer, but it was last minute, not giving him enough time to adapt before the season started. Before he was able to sign lower value players with a lot of potential. He seems unable to spot these players now.

What I am saying is that to just cross your fingers and hope for improvement in the future after 9 seasons of decline is not going to achieve anything. He did not take over a poor team, he inherited one of the best sides in the country. For example, the defence was built by George Graham and it was Bruce Rioch that signed Dennis Bergkamp. Yes, there is a chance that a new manager would prompt a decline, but Arsenal are declining anyway. The difference would not be that severe in my opinion. The defeat to Everton seems symbolic to me. The old manager who plays attacking football, qualifying for the champions league, being replaced by the new.

I thin Kroenke and Gazidis need to act at the end of the season. If the season continues as it is going and Wenger still signs a new contract, I predict a strong adverse reaction among Arsenal fans. Given the stupidly high ticket prices, fans may stop going, which would damage Arsenal's business model. The problem is that neither Gazidis or Kroenke seem to want to hold Wenger accountable for the teams failings. Gazidis often seems intimidated by Wenger, which, given that Wenger is supposedly accountable to him, is a bad way to run the club. It also means that he and Kroenke are unlikely to sack Wenger, which is a problem as Wenger seems to be desperately clinging on to power (imho a lot like Ecclestone in F1!). This makes the most likely scenario that Wenger will sign a new contract, whatever Arsenal fans may think and the decline will continue. This season therefore could mark the end of Arsenal's participation in the Champions League for the foreseeable future.