In defence of mounting criticism

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In defence of mounting criticism

Postby Reverend Gooner » Mon Jul 30, 2007 6:13 pm

You would have thought that the funny nature of football, the overt ironies and the constant unpredictability of the sport would have made the phrase 'don't write anyone off' a universal wisdom used throughout our sport but it seems people love to do the opposite, quite frivolously at times and especially so this year concerning Arsenal.

I am not just talking about the typical negative/ banter views of rival fans, those who dislike arsenal or love to disagree for the sake of it (we all know the type I mean) but also the views of the neutral, reasoned fan, people who I know have no bias and you can be guaranteed to actually have a productive conversation about football with. Recently I have noticed people of both dispositions genuinely writing Arsenal off.

The reasons usually given for writing us off are quite numerous and familiar. Here are a few:

Our last 2 seasons were disappointments, last year we only had a sniff at the carling cup and didn't win it whilst being nowhere in everything else.

In the last few years we have had a Leeds Unitedesque exodus of our best players without replacing them and have now sold Henry leaving a team without any top players.

We have lost David Dean, Wenger’s future is in doubt (with his departure will be the end of days) and everyone will leave when he does and Arsenal will be doomed to mediocrity.

The main reason given by many who care to delve most seriously with their views is that we are not evolving with the rest of the premiership. Our policy of not buying big and spending big on the best players may have worked in previous years but it will not work anymore as other clubs have upped the ante. There is a takeover revolution going on, clubs like Man City, Villa, West Ham, Newcastle, etc are now equipped to pay top 4 amounts in transfers and wages and have been, whilst Man Utd, Liverpool and Tottenham are spending money like it will be worthless tomorrow. This new money mania has rendered our philosophy obsolete and we have to follow suit or we ourselves will become obsolete.

'Arsenal have bought 3 unknowns to boost a mediocre, inexperienced squad whilst everyone else has been buying the cream of Europe' to quote a pal.


These are the big charges laid down, among others, and there is truth to some but I do not think they will reflect so negatively on the club as everyone else does. Here are my thoughts on the subject.

The last 2 seasons were not disastrous for us. 2 years ago we were in the Champions League final to the envy of all the other British teams. We stole the show that year, Chelsea winning the title only got 2 days of back page coverage, we had the rest and make no mistake that Chelsea would have swapped their title to have a go at winning the holy grail. Sadly we didn't win but it was a courageous performance and it was an unforgettable journey along the way.


Last season Man Utd and Chelsea were immense, fair play, yet we finished on the same points as Liverpool without the combined threat of Henry and Van Persie for most of the season. We widened the gap against Spurs and if it were not for poor finishing across the season we would have finished much closer to the top. Our Carling cup boys did us proud too and showed us that the future is bright.

We may have sold some key players recently but they were either getting old or it was just their time. We have not replaced them with established stars but they were not established stars in the first place. The fact that our 2nd team reached the CC final beating full strength teams such as Spurs, Liverpool and Everton shows that the money we have spent has been spent well.

The only problem I think we had last season (minus injuries) was consistent finishing. That was all and a minor problem (in the grand scheme of things) at that. If our players finished the countless chances we created we would have been title contenders and we would not be written off so quickly today but we didn't and now we are here. We just need to be a little ruthless on goal (Da Silva) and we should be sorted.
Most teams have countless worries to do with their play and we have one, finishing, i am happy about that and when we sort that out (which i am sure will be this year) we will be an undeniable force.

This team, bearing in mind Henry and VP sadly were bit parters last year may not have "top players" (in the fashionable sense) but they played like a top team and did well considering their perceived "status" according to many.
This year we have lost Henry yes (legend, please retire number 14) but we have RVP back, the team of last year has a years more experience to it's name and we have 3 new signings who have alot of potential and unlike other teams who have bought lots of players we have bought few so that we do not disrupt this ever improving and maturing squad. Overall things look positive not negative.

Briefly (as this is worth a thread in itself), Wenger is monumental concerning this club success but if he does leave it will not all be over. If he leaves it means that a takeover will be 100% guaranteed. We will get in a top manager, play the buying big game and because of our tradition, fan base, location, stadium and quality of current team we will be a better prospect than the other newly taken over clubs and therefore get the players. It will be different but we will still be up there.

The main argument I keep hearing about not evolving is based on the view that our unique philosophy is negative and detrimental to the club but I firmly believe it is positive and will be until we cease to abide by it.
The players which we apparently should up the ante and pay for such as Torres, Tevez, Bent, Eto’o and the others we were/are laughably linked with in the press are players we just wouldn’t buy anyway. The reason Wenger never buys them is because we already have them, they may come under different names, be younger and as yet unheard of but they are waiting to come through the ranks and they will be top class one day, the only difference is we will not pay the overpriced privilege to use them now. While other clubs pay high fees for a player that may produce but is unlikely to ever give them a profit if sold we buy young, wait for them to mature and then see what impact they can make and if they are not quite the grade or are fantastic and believed by the boss to be at the right time to sell we nearly always make a profit, how many other clubs can say that?

Fabregas would be sold right now for £20 million +, we bought him for £500k I think. We could have spent £17 million on the Carricks, Hargreaves, and your Riberys of this world but instead we have someone better and we picked him up along time ago for a nominal price. Also now these new players in other clubs have to come in and justify their price tag which can have a negative effect on some players, whilst our players will not have that pressure on them, one less thing to worry about.

While some people complain that we are not spending big on certain positions I am certain that there is someone we have not heard of sitting in our youth team or a teenager that will soon be brought in quietly who will make waves in the next three years. People may say, where is your multimillion pound player in position x? but in 2 or 3 years time when an unknown has come through, played amazing and become a talent worth multi millions people will be saying “oh, there he is, he was there all along, well done Wenger”.

Plus whilst all the other newly rich clubs will be all demanding success and will be transferring and trading away to the extent you will think it is supermarket sweep we will keep the bulk of our squad consistent and in place. A club which buys 6 players, does ok but not well enough, decides to buy 6 more the next season after selling 4 and then repeats the cycle (which will happen because not everyone can win) is in a much worse state than one that buys little and bonds the quality they already have. This is where our philosophy is positive and superior to the new evolved big bucks buying game and is why we are in such a better state than most other clubs. The fact is that we don’t waste money, we put other teams to waste.

It will happen again and again until Wenger leaves the only immediate question is “can the current team /squad do us justice in the short term and I believe it most definitely can. Our young, depleted squad last year did exceedingly well whilst playing attractive football and most of the time without Henry. This year they are older, wiser, better and have a few, hopefully quality new signings to complement their play. Things look up for me and not down.

Let’s see if the teams who move to their new £500 million stadiums in the future and end a bit strapped for cash and need to put the brakes on spending can use their money to produce the same results we do. I very much doubt it and by the time those teams finish their stadiums, due to our economic prowess we probably would have paid off our stadium and have more money than we desire to spend anyway.

These are some of my counter arguments to the charges often laid at my door. Sorry if I have rambled on a bit or am preaching to the choir, this is my first article and hopefully will be forgiven any shortcomings.

What are people’s thoughts on the subject? Do you agree/disagree with me? Genuinely concerned by any of the issues stated (or others)? Or wish to elaborate on any points I have made?

Please feel free, long live the gunners

Reverend Gooner
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Postby ozgooner » Tue Jul 31, 2007 5:57 am

great article reverend , and i agree with all your arguments and counter points . i feel good about this season and can see us being :trophy: in 2008/2009 . all my non gooner (read:t***er) mates are predicting our demise . i have to laugh when my stupid spud mate matty tells me this is the year they'll beat us and that tottenham will be in the champions league .
we are going along well and i'm very happy with where we're at . as far as i'm concerned we only need one more big signature ........













that of le boss :flag:
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Postby She_Gunner_Wales » Tue Jul 31, 2007 8:20 am

Fantatsic article, i agree with all your points, im an optimist too ;)
It doesnt overly concern me that Arsene goes for youth over experience in new signings, maybe not all make it to the dizzy heights 1st team, or will get impatient and move on, but as you pointed out we always make a profit, very rarely do we not, but a handful will make it, as we have seen over the past few seasons.
We have some very fine talent but tbh even with the loss of Thierry & Freddie i think we have found the right balance between age & experience, i sometimes get the feeling that Wenger is doing what SAF did, which led to Utd doing the treble, with the likes of giggs, scholes, beckham, & the ugly sisters.

I also post on a general football forum & non-gooners there are predicting we will crash & burn now that Thierry has gone, it pisses me off big time, they forget that last season with a thread bare strikeforce that of the 3 finishers only the scouse managed to beat us in the league, after having drawn both home & away to chelsa & doing the double over utd, and only losing the carling cup to a very dodgy Drogba goal.

In some respects the more people write us off the better, let them think we are the underdogs & cannot challenge, it will take the pressue off & we'll come back with guns ablazing!

I hope others take the time to read your article, enjoyable read!

Well said Rev! :trophy:
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Postby rvtheace » Tue Jul 31, 2007 9:44 am

Very true!!! If we don't get injuries as bad as the one we suffered last season, we will do fine!
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Postby CLS » Tue Jul 31, 2007 9:53 am

top notch as per usual :005:
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Postby mikey_gooner » Tue Jul 31, 2007 5:01 pm

The Arsenal are always at their best when faced with adversity , let the mugs keep writing us off , they do so at their peril , they did the same in 04 just before the PLD38 W26 D12 L0 season .... have always liked being hated as a team then the constant media love in that has happened in the last few years , everyone saying we are their second team and all that shite , f**k em all f**k em all , united west ham , liverpool , cos we are The Arsenal we are the best we are The Arsenal so f**k all the rest ......
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Postby rvtheace » Tue Jul 31, 2007 6:37 pm

mikey_gooner wrote:The Arsenal are always at their best when faced with adversity , let the mugs keep writing us off , they do so at their peril , they did the same in 04 just before the PLD38 W26 D12 L0 season .... have always liked being hated as a team then the constant media love in that has happened in the last few years , everyone saying we are their second team and all that shite , f**k em all f**k em all , united west ham , liverpool , cos we are The Arsenal we are the best we are The Arsenal so f**k all the rest ......
:d:

Why would anyone want to be hated? Very few teams get the sort of adulation from neutrals that we used to, it will be back soon.
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Postby mikey_gooner » Tue Jul 31, 2007 6:45 pm

who gives a flying f**k if neutrals love us or not ?
all i know is we are better when everyone writes us off , less pressure , let the yids from the lane see if they can handle the pressure and expectation this season , we will roll our sleeves up and prove everyone wrong , first ten fixtures fairly easy and can see us not dropping a point , our trouble last season was not against the top four it was against the mickey mouse teams that we struggled .
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Postby rvtheace » Tue Jul 31, 2007 6:50 pm

mikey_gooner wrote:who gives a flying f**k if neutrals love us or not ?
all i know is we are better when everyone writes us off , less pressure , let the yids from the lane see if they can handle the pressure and expectation this season , we will roll our sleeves up and prove everyone wrong , first ten fixtures fairly easy and can see us not dropping a point , our trouble last season was not against the top four it was against the mickey mouse teams that we struggled .
:flag:

Maybe to a long term fan like you it doesn't make much difference, but it was not so long ago that I didn't care much for football. Arsenal made me a football fan, and naturally, I supported Arsenal. Besides, if neutrals in Europe like Arsenal, that would mean that people in Asia and America could well start SUPPORTING the club. Which means more fans, more TV money, more sponsorship deals, more jersey sales, you get the idea?

And I don't think it was 'pressure' that caused us problems. It was a squad that had been hit by injuries, that couldn't score! We were the best footballing side last season.
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Postby mikey_gooner » Tue Jul 31, 2007 6:57 pm

never said it was pressure that caused us problems , i agree it was poor finishing and injuries and giving teams a goal head start too many times that was our downfall . and why would i really care if loads of neutrals from around the world buy the awful new 3rd shirt that has been forced upon us by nike ? it is shit like this that is driving away the old school fans and soon the stadium will be full of noveau fans who aint got a clue about what it means to be an arsenal fan , they sit there telling us to sit down and shut up when we sing treating it like some kind of f***ing saturday afternoon trip to the theatre waiting to be entertained . bollcoks to all that , bring back the days standing in the topside of the northbank with real arsenal fans .

sorry man getting too sentimental i think :oops:
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Postby rvtheace » Wed Aug 01, 2007 5:17 am

mikey_gooner wrote:never said it was pressure that caused us problems , i agree it was poor finishing and injuries and giving teams a goal head start too many times that was our downfall . and why would i really care if loads of neutrals from around the world buy the awful new 3rd shirt that has been forced upon us by nike ? it is shit like this that is driving away the old school fans and soon the stadium will be full of noveau fans who aint got a clue about what it means to be an arsenal fan , they sit there telling us to sit down and shut up when we sing treating it like some kind of f***ing saturday afternoon trip to the theatre waiting to be entertained . bollcoks to all that , bring back the days standing in the topside of the northbank with real arsenal fans .

sorry man getting too sentimental i think :oops:

I think 'noveau' fans are better ways to bring in money than investors who want to takeover the entire club. ;)
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Postby Reverend Gooner » Wed Aug 01, 2007 9:23 pm

Cheers for the positive feedback peeps.

I agree with She Gunner and Mikey that the more they write us off the better it is for us. When the pressure is off we tend to play our best.
Also the fact that this team in the last two years has dealt with the pressures of a champions league final, getting used to a new stadium and playing amongst problems on and off the pitch i am certain that when the pressure turns back on, they will be more than ready for it 8)

RV- I was in Morocco last month and everyone i spoke to about football loved the gunners, everyone said that we played the best football and that they enjoyed watching us the most. I heard it so strongly there that i imagine it is echoed in other neutral countries too (hopefully) so i wouldn't worry about losing the neutral just yet :)

If anyone is interested the common concensus in Morocco is that Liverpool play the most boring football in the prem.

I tend to lean with Mikey on the 'noveau fan' issuee. I luckily managed to go to one game last season (Wigan) and i was disgusted by some of the fans attitudes. Very quiet as Mikey said, certainly no encouragement or support when we needed it that most and i little too much moaning. You would have thought that when you pay £40+ for a ticket you want to give it everything you got, obviously not.
The thing that really annoyed me was the leaving 10 minutes before time, we sang 'don't come back' to them and i was glad when they missed the winner.

I have only been once so i cannot make that much of a judgement but what i experienced was not good. It was certainly never like that at Highbury :cry:


Leave the noveau fans at home, we have other ways of making the money and besides, compared to other clubs we don't need that much anyway.
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Postby Libertine » Thu Aug 02, 2007 8:16 am

Reverend Gooner wrote:I tend to lean with Mikey on the 'noveau fan' issuee. I luckily managed to go to one game last season (Wigan) and i was disgusted by some of the fans attitudes. Very quiet as Mikey said, certainly no encouragement or support when we needed it that most and i little too much moaning. You would have thought that when you pay £40+ for a ticket you want to give it everything you got, obviously not.
The thing that really annoyed me was the leaving 10 minutes before time, we sang 'don't come back' to them and i was glad when they missed the winner.


We've now got an audience rather than a football crowd.
People are waiting to be entertained, rather than encourage the team to play well.

I refer to them as Euro'96 fans, in that they only discovered the game when Baddiel and Skinner made it the in thing.

In some ways i'd love us to have a couple of bad seasons, just so they'd f**k and support someone else!
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Postby mikey_gooner » Thu Aug 02, 2007 8:51 am

Libertine wrote:
Reverend Gooner wrote:I tend to lean with Mikey on the 'noveau fan' issuee. I luckily managed to go to one game last season (Wigan) and i was disgusted by some of the fans attitudes. Very quiet as Mikey said, certainly no encouragement or support when we needed it that most and i little too much moaning. You would have thought that when you pay £40+ for a ticket you want to give it everything you got, obviously not.
The thing that really annoyed me was the leaving 10 minutes before time, we sang 'don't come back' to them and i was glad when they missed the winner.


We've now got an audience rather than a football crowd.
People are waiting to be entertained, rather than encourage the team to play well.

I refer to them as Euro'96 fans, in that they only discovered the game when Baddiel and Skinner made it the in thing.

In some ways i'd love us to have a couple of bad seasons, just so they'd f**k and support someone else!


totally agree with ya mate , piss of the hornbies that seem to make up the majority of our support in the stadium these days especially old PHFC herself !!

EIE ;)
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Postby Libertine » Thu Aug 02, 2007 11:08 am

mikey_gooner wrote: especially old PHFC herself !!

EIE ;)



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