Author Archives: keenosafc

Could a new manager turn Arsenal around in a season?

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On the She Wore Facebook Page, GC recently asked the question:

Could a new manager turn us around in a season, or has too much damage been done?

It is an interesting question, and one which could take some exploring.

Factors that need to be taken into account are things such as:

  • What actually is “turning Arsenal around”? How do we define if a new manager has turned us around?
  • Is all a new manager all that Arsenal needs to “turn around”.

I think a good starting point is to look at other managers at top 6 clubs, as to whether we think they have actually turned things round.

We start with Pep Guardiola. He has certainly turned Manchester City around. They are winning the league title at a canter this season. When he took over, Man City had just finished 4th – 15 points off top.

There is no argument that Guardiola has turned City round, but it has taken until his second season – in his first, they once again finished 15 points behind the Champions.

Guardiola has also spent close to £400m in the 18 months he has been at Manchester City, and is managing a squad that cost nearly £800m.

So if we are setting the bar At Premeir League Champions as the KPI for turning the club around in a season, is this not a little unfair, taking into account it took Guardiola 2 years and the most expensively assembled squad in football history?

Then we have Antonio Conte. He did turn things round within a single season – romping to the league title in his first season. There is no doubt he turned around a Chelsea team that were mid-table under Jose Mourinho.

But roll on 6 months and they are once again off the pace in the league, losing at home to Bournemouth and Burnley. They look a shadow of the team they were last season, Conte is on the ropes and could be out of the door.

Conte might have won the league title, and turned the club around in the short term, but he seems to have done little to address the long term issues that have been at the club for some time.

Would a new manager coming in and winning the title signify a turnaround, if the off-field problems we have had for years are still there?

Has Jose Mourinho turned Manchester United around? Last season, they won two trophies – the Europa League and League Cup – and finished 6th. Arsenal could be on for an identical set of results this year, yet we would class that as not good enough. Therefore it is impossible to say the Mourinho turned Man U around if we as fans would not be happy with an identical success.

And a year on, are United really any better? They might have gone from 6th to 2nd, but they are no more competitive in the title race than Arsenal. They will not win the league.

He has spent big on Paul Pogba, on Romelu Lukaku, over £300m spent over 18 months, nearly the same of Pep Guardiola but without the title winning team.

Reading the press, you would think Jurgen Klopp has done a great job for Liverpool. But 3 years into his job, he has still yet to win a trophy. In his first season at Liverpool, he led the team to 8th. This would represent a step backwards if Arsenal’s new manager did the same.

His next season they were 4th. 17 points behind the title. Just 1 point ahead of Arsenal. Won nothing.

If last season, when Arsenal finished 5th and with the FA Cup, was deemed a failure, surely Liverpool’s was also a failure? This season, it looks like same old, Liverpool will finish between 3rd and 6th. He has turned nothing around at Liverpool – they finished 2nd 15 months before he took over.

There is no point even discussing Spurs. The media narrative on them is that Pochettino does not need to win trophies as a sign of success. Therefore the bar for what was needed to turn Spurs around is so low, he basically needs to save them from relegation to be seen as a success.

So would a new manager at Arsenal be able to turn the club around in a season? Again the answer comes in what you think him turning the club around would be?

If a new man takes over a club who has finished 6th, but has won a few cups over the last 5 years, takes the club to 3rd, winning nothing, would that be seen as turning the club around?

What if he takes the side back into the top 4, and wins the FA Cup, would that be turning the club round?

Would it be unreasonable to expect a new manager to come in and win the league title straight away in his first season, when Guardiola has taken 2 seasons and £400m?

Even if we say “we want to compete for the title.” Had a new manager came in during the summer of 2017, we would still have been well off the incredible pace of Manchester City and Guardiola’s £800m squad. No team is within 16 points of the league leader.

Is it just the team mentality that needs to turn around? The poor defeats to Swansea, Stoke and more. But then Chelsea lost to Burnley, Newcastle United and Huddersfield have beaten Manchester United. Liverpool recently lost to Swansea City.

We set the bar high in 2004 with an unbeaten season. We can not expect to repeat this. Defeats against teams we should not lose to happen. They are part of football. If you are saying to turn around Arsenal, we don’t want to lose to the likes of Stoke / Swansea / etc then you are perhaps being unrealistic.

So to answer GC’s question as to whether a manager can turn around Arsenal in a season, you have to ask another question.

What would you class as having successfully turned Arsenal around?

Keenos

Backing Bellerin

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Hector Bellerin has come in for some stick this season. To a point where some Arsenal fans say they would be “happy if he leaves in the summer”. For me, the Spanish right back is taken for granted. And the fact that it has taken me so long to defend him shows that even I take him for granted.

Bellerin has not had the best of seasons. He has been up and down. Maybe even regressed a little. But it needs to be remembered that he is still just 22 years old. He seems to have been around for a long time – he has – but there is still plenty of time to improve.

As fans, we continually moan our players are not good enough. “They would not start for any other top side” I often hear. Yet Bellerin would.

If Bellerin left, Man U, Chelsea, Liverpool, Barcelona and Real Madrid will all want him. He would walk into every single one of the their sides. He is in the top 1 or 2 right backs in the Premier League, and amongst the best in Europe.

He has had two major issues holding him back this season. Tactics and competition.

His main problem is he is being left isolated by Wenger’s line ups. He has played all season without a winger that gives him any defensive cover, and going forward a winger who doesn’t help him out. He is always left 2 on 1 – both in defence and attack.

This causes him to be over exposed when defending, and isolated when attacking.

He has also struggled due to lack of competition for his place.

Bellerin has played every minute of every Premier League game this season. We moan about the fitness issues of Koscielny, Ramsey, Welbeck and Wilshere; Mesut Ozil loves a sick day. But here we have a player who is available every weekend. And yet we want him out?

There are times this season he should have been taken out of the first team. Either due to a drop in fitness or drop in form, but we do not have a quality back up.

Bellerin does not have someone to push him. Look how Nacho Monreal has performed this season since we signed Saed Kolasinac.

On that, before yesterday’s game, I saw many comments along the lines of “what does Kolasinac need to do to get a game”. He needs to perform better than Monreal, who has been or player of the season thus far, that’s what he has to do.

In the right hand side, Bellerin has no completion. No one to drive him forward, to replace him. He has perhaps got a little bit comfortable with his guaranteed place in the team.

The criticism has got so silly people have started to criticise his dress sense. Having been to Spain, you see a lot of young 20-somethings dresses like him. The long hair, the earring. They dress like weirdos. It’s their culture. And as for the modelling, we all enjoyed Freddie Ljungberg’s Calvin Klein photoshots. Leave the lad alone. I’d rather Bellerin models in his spare time rather than gambles, part takes in sex videos or sleeps with his best mates misses. Or drinks until he vomits, strips and starts abusing US tourists stranded at Heathrow after flights were grounded following the attacks by terrorists on the World Trade Center.

A few have abused Bellerin over his comments that what Alexis Sanchez ‘Demands from everyone, sometimes it can be too much.’ Some have labelled this as showing he has a weak mentality.

But we have all been there. Given 100%, only for a boss to demand more from us. And what happens? Rather than your boss being motivational, he ends up demotivating you. Demanding ‘too much’ can be detrimental.

I always feel with Héctor Bellerin, with his cockney/Spanish accent that he is as close to being a fan of Arsenal as any other player. In his recent Q&A with Oxford University, he talks about the joy of hearing his song sung for the first time – one which is not sung enough.

He talks about Arsenal Fan TV. About how “it’s so wrong for someone who claims to be a fan and their success is fed of a failure. How can that be a fan? They just people hustling. Trying to make money.”

He talks about how he tries to listen to what managers and coaches say on how to improve, about how he has learnt to ignore those commenting from outside the game who just like their voices heard.

Bellerin comes across someone who is smart and passionate. Passionate about Arsenal.

We should be backing the likes of Bellerin, not starting a hate campaign to get him out of our club.

He is already one of the best right backs in Europe. Within a few years he will be the best right back in the world.

Keenos

Introducing: The Arsenal FC Armed Forces Supporters’ Club

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Long time readers of this blog will now that we have been long terms supporters of both the Taxi Charity for Military Veterans and The Royal British Legion. For these reasons, we were delighted to have a sit down with the founder of the Arsenal FC Armed Forces Supporters’ Club – who have recently been given official supporters club status by The Arsenal.

The group was originally founded by Chris Mead, an SAC in the Royal Air Force and lifelong Arsenal fan.

“I started the Arsenal FC Armed Forces Supporters’ Club after seeing some chaps cleaning up a memorial before Armistice Day. Helping them out were a couple of former Spurs players. After a discussion with them, it transpired that they belonged to the Armed Forces Spurs Supporters Club.

I came away from the discussion wondering if Arsenal had a similar supporters club. A supporters club  which could unite Arsenal fans in the military no mater where they were stationed across the globe. It was quickly established that they did not. So I took it upon myself get in contract with Arsenal and form one!

The majority of supporters club are regionally based. I wanted to set up a club that when I got posted, whether it be with the United Kingdom or beyond, would cater for my needs. It was always a frustration of mind having to track down and make contact with a new supporters club everytime I was posted elsewhere.

Despite only having been up and running for a short time, Arsenal FC Armed Forces Supporters’ Club already have a good and safe network of people who attend games as a group. We arrange to meet up before and after games – both home and away.

We are now looking to increase our network, and bring awareness to both serving military personnel and veterans that Arsenal has a place for them.

Over time we intend to use our position and association with the club to raise money for the various military charities, as well as thebe invited by the club to be involved on Remembrance Sundays and Armed Forces Days to assist the paying of respects.

We hope to continue to grow and evolve to encompass all UK service personnel worldwide.”

Arsenal FC Armed Forces Supporters’ Club already has a pot of tickets that can be purchased through the club, via safe and easy ticket exchanging.

The supporters club is open to all Arsenal fans that have served, or are currently serving, in any of the British Armed Forces. Membership is currently free.

If you want to join, please get in touch through Twitter: @ASCArmedForces

Additionally all non-military Arsenal fans are invited to show their support for the British Armed Forces by following their twitter feed: @ASCArmedForces.

We wish the lads running the supporters club luck and hope that it continues to grow and support the British Armed Forces and The Arsenal.

She Wore