Marble Halls has written a very good article in Gunners Town which I recommend our readers to read. I was going to respond to the article as a reply but there are many issues raised in it that I think are better set out as an article in response to his.
I don`t think anyone would disagree with what is a very measured and reasonable point of view. I particularly agree with Marble Halls`s opinion of what defines a fact as opposed to an opinion.
In response to a plea to stop the fighting, I agree and I think that it should never have started. As a “Wenger Out” advocate I nevertheless do not support abuse either in banners or in physical and literal form. In my opinion there is ample empirical evidence to show that Wenger is no longer fit for purpose, but firstly I believe that he is arrogant and stubborn. He has a Napoleonic presence at Arsenal because he oversees every single aspect of the club, from deciding on transfers, coaching, commercial enterprises and ticket prices. In other words in all of the aspects of the club, the issues which the loyal fan has an interest in depends upon Wenger`s opinion and performance.
Unfortunately, whilst most of us admire his past achievements and we listen to his opinions, he does not reciprocate with any kind of appreciation or even acknowledgement of the ever growing number of fans who are disillusioned with his long term under-achievement and meaningless mantras to deal with the discontent. Until very recently, he has not even admitted that we are in crisis. We have heard repeatedly that “this is a very strong team”. “They have great spirit”. “This is the best squad of players I have had since the Invincibles”.
It has gone beyond a joke and we are now the butt of jokes by other supporters (especially Spurs supporters) and also of the sporting media. Despite the fact that for the last five years we have led the league in or around January, we have only managed to scrape into the top 4 because we repeatedly implode in January to March despite his opinion that this is his best team since the Invincibles. Of course that is Wenger`s opinion and it matters not that it is comprehensively wrong. He still steadfastly supports his own manifestly wrong opinion and refuses to acknowledge what the vast majority of our fans (even his supporters) know the difference between his opinion and a fact.
He has many times stated that he does not read comments about him and he does not listen to the opinion of fans. If you analyse that it means that he does not take the AKB brigade’s opinions into consideration either, so how can they respect him when he does not respect them?
That brings me to the crux of this matter. It is regrettable that Arsenal fans have resorted to fist fighting within and without the ground and I suspect that it is initiated by Wenger Supporters raging at the placards and banners of the Wenger Out army. I would suggest for a moment that those banners at which the Wengerites react are not aimed at them. They are a method of attracting Arsene Wenger’s attention because all legitimate means have been tried. He has made it clear on many occasions that he does not pay attention to their opinions and that is a fact.
Napoleon Wenger
As far as I am aware, Arsenal F.C. is not a dictatorship, even though it is run like one, and a section of the fans who slavishly follow Napoleon Wenger, are not his soldiers, should those fans who oppose him, be the victims of the consequences of their opinions.
If Napoleon Wenger really loves Arsenal Football club as he has often professed, let him step back and take a look at what is happening to his beloved club. The fans are divided and at loggerheads with each other. The Emirates is an unpleasant ( and even dangerous for some ) place to go to ( Fact ). We are outside the Top 4 and unlikely to make it back in ( fact ). Our best players seem to want to go and it will be difficult to entice any top class players to come here. The future is bleak. ( opinion ).
If we do not finish in the top 4 and the 2 Manchester clubs, Chelsea, Liverpool and Spurs strengthen their squads, what can Wenger do that would be better than he has done for the past 12 years? What will be the effect if he does not go? Are we to descend even further than we have? My opinion is that he will continue to foment the dissention between the fans and that the Emirates will be a cold home for football. The team will dissolve and there will be dissention in the dressing room because there is no leader within it and Wenger does not know how to control it. The team will still have no cohesion, no shape and no tactical plan when they go out to play.
If you love Wenger and you are shocked by the above scenario, I would ask you to provide an alternative conclusion and to supply your reasoning to support it. In reality, I don’t think any such opinion will be forthcoming because Wengerites no longer read the sites where the correspondence is predominantly anti-Wenger. They only want to read their own rose-tinted sites. The absence of open and reasoned debate is sadly another casualty of Wenger`s selfish arrogance.
A sophisticated, articulate Arsenal Man of Mystery. Aged 70 and a bit.
Thanks for the high praise lol.