Arsenal FC: Six Steps That Arsene Wenger Can Adopt to Help the Club Progress
A fortnight: how long it seems in football. Arsenal’s hopes of a quadruple have come crashing down and now, the Gunners have only the Premier League to fight for.
Arsenal still stands a good chance of lifting the league come May, but the last two weeks have shown that work still remains.
Arsene Wenger’s dream has always been to lift the Champions League trophy, but currently, there seems to be something missing from this squad and in this article, I will be focusing on certain steps that can be taken up to ensure that Arsenal becomes a true superpower on the world stage in few years time.
The Gunners have not been able to win a trophy for six years and a reason for that is because of Wenger’s change in policy. Wenger chose to adopt a policy that offers the club financial stability and at the same time, Arsenal have a talented squad to compete in the top competitions.
So here is a look at six steps that can be adopted by Wenger to help the club progress:
Buy or develop a leader
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Ever since the departure of the legendary Patrick Vieira, Arsenal have lacked a proper leader, a person who can lead the players and marshal the troops when things are not going your way. Fabregas is a good leader, but he is not that vocal leader. Van Persie maybe an extremely dedicated player, but he lacks the qualities of a leader.
I’m not stating that Arsenal need a new captain, but just the fact that Arsenal need a player who is capable of leading the players, much like what Sol Campbell did last year. Campbell had a positive effect on the club and his attitude helped the club a great deal.
Arsenal’s success has always been positively influenced by having a strong leader. First, there was Tony Adams, the man who will remain the greatest leader and defender the club has ever seen. He was followed by Patrick Vieira, a natural leader and the man who led Arsenal to the Invincibles.
Fabregas is a decent captain, but he lacks the fierceness and passion that one would expect from an Arsenal leader. Added to that, there is the factor that he spends half the time on the treatment table and is not present to lead the club that often.
Arsene Wenger needs to address this problem because having an effective leader can help the team fight out of difficult situations and instills a better mentality among the players.
One really good option within the squad seems to be Thomas Vermaelen. He is vocal, has a fighting spirit and has all the makings of a great leader. It would require a bold move from Wenger to hand the captaincy over the Vermaelen but if Fabregas’s sale to Barcelona does indeed transpire, then Wenger will have his next captain in the Belgian.
Continue to develop youth talent and loan out them out
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Over the last six years, Arsene Wenger has developed a comprehensive youth system and now, Arsenal produce several talented players. In the current team, Arsenal have the likes of Wilshere, Ramsey, Gibbs, Clichy and Fabregas, all of whom joined the club at a young age and some of them are already essential components of the first team, while the rest are on their way to becoming first team regulars.
Last year Jack Wilshere benefitted greatly from a loan spell at Bolton and this season, he has been a revelation for the Gunners. In a team like Arsenal were there are so many players fighting for a starting place, a loan deal is the best option for these youngsters as it allows them to adjust to the pace of the league and it gives them a much needed exposure and experience.
Jack Wilshere was loaned out just before he made the transition into a first team player. Wenger has to look to follow this same policy with all the players. Like he learned with Havard Nordtveit and Fran Merida, these youngsters are desperate for game time and time on the sidelines will result in them moving away to other clubs.
Players like Lansbury, Miyaichi, and Bartley who are all currently loaned out look to be the next wave of talent for the Gunners and look set to impress for the first team.
Wenger’s youth policy provides Arsenal with the option of going easy during the transfer market and yet having sufficient depth in the squad to compete for top honors. It is because of the effectiveness of the youth system that Arsenal unlike so many other top teams are not dependent on the transfer market for their players but instead have it within the system.
Keep onto experienced players and get the stars to sign long term contract
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Players like Rosicky and Arshavin may be struggling at times especially the former but one thing these two players have is experience. In the present Arsenal squad, the Gunners have several young players and they do not as of now possess enough experience at the top level.
These players have won trophies elsewhere and do know what it takes to win trophies. Their experience will come in handy in the dressing room and they can play a vital role in the development of players like Emmanuel Thomas, Miyaichi, and Ramsey.
Wenger does have a strict policy for those players who are above thirty but like he did with Campbell last season he should be a bit more lenient on that rule and value experience.
Recently there were rumors that the likes of Clichy, Arshavin may move away from the Emirates. Arsene Wenger has to ensure that his more experienced players stay at Arsenal. Clichy is the only player remaining from the Invincibles era and Wenger cannot afford to lose all his experienced players.
Arsene Wenger has to ensure that all his top players stay at the club for at least another two to three seasons.
Another thing Wenger has to look to do is keep Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas. Fabregas will benefit from staying at Arsenal and with Barcelona unable to meet Arsenal’s evaluation for the player it will be better for all parties if he stays at Arsenal for at least another two seasons. By that time Aaron Ramsey would be ready to take over his mantle.
Samir Nasri is another player who Wenger must retain at all costs. His contract expires next summer and considering his quality, Arsenal cannot afford to lose him.
Show faith in underperforming players
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During the start of the season, van Persie got injured as usual and during the absence of the Dutchman, it was Marouane Chamakh who rose to the occasion and minimized his loss. The summer signing scored 10 goals in his first season in the Premier League. But since November he has scored only one goal which came against League One side, Leyton Orient.
Van Persie has been in scintillating form and so, Chamakh has made very few starts since the Dutchman’s return. Since then he has looked short of confidence, has missed chances he would have normally buried and has looked lackluster.
Wenger’s decision not to play him in several games is one of the reasons for his poor form. Chamakh is a good striker who adds another dimension to Arsenal’s play and having him firing would be great to the squad especially considering the fact van Persie is extremely injury prone.
Wenger is known to show faith in his players even when others have called for their removal. Players like Alex Song and Johan Djourou were at one time considered liabilities and now they are indispensable components of the squad. Their rise to prominence is in large parts due to the faith and trust bestowed by Wenger on them. He stuck by their sides and brought out the best in them.
Even this season when the fans were booing Arshavin, Wenger put faith in the diminutive Russian who has responded with a few scintillating performances.
Showing faith in the players provides these players with much needed confidence and helps them perform to their optimum level.
Wenger has to do that with the struggling Moroccan and with players like Diaby and Denilson.
Diaby definitely has talent but regular injuries have disrupted his performances. Even Denilson does show promise in glimpses. These two players are currently playing poorly and look short of confidence,
Wenger has to support them and at the same time ensure that they don’t take their place in the starting lineup for granted and know that in order to play they must perform.
Stop the excuses and admit weaknesses
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There is no doubt that Arsenal have been on the receiving end of some truly poor refereeing decisions and they have been affected by them. Wenger maybe justified in moaning about these incidents but the fact is at the end of the day there is hardly any use. These decisions are going to stay and how much ever, Wenger complains, they are not going to change.
Complaining about these decisions can have a bad effect on the squad. For one it becomes an excuse sometimes to always point the finger at the referee. For instance let’s take a look at the Barcelona match played at the Camp Nou. The sending off of Arsenal’s Robin van Persie was a wrong decision but that was not the only reason Arsenal lost.
Wenger as the manager should take look at the fact that Arsenal managed no shot on goal and that they had only 28 percent of possession. Wenger many a times does tend to use the referees as a smokescreen for Arsenal’s poor performance. There is also the case of the team hiding under the excuses given by the manager and there goes the scope for improvement.
It’s not only that, many times Wenger refuses to accept his team’ weaknesses. Like in the January transfer window it was obvious that Wenger had to buy a centre back but he refused to do so and now it is coming back to haunt the Gunners.
Wenger has high expectations of his side but it would be wrong if he is not willing to look at the weaknesses in his squad.
Be ready to change tactics
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Arsenal are always accused of having a one dimensional game and the recent match against Manchester United only reinforced that belief. Wenger has developed a style of play that few teams in the world can copy. Yet there are some flaws in this style.
Arsenal’s style can dominate teams in terms of possession but as time has gone, more and more teams are able to withstand Arsenal’s pressure. Arsenal’s game lacks the cutting edge during the absence of Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie and many a times Wenger’s persistence with the beautiful game makes Arsenal prone to the counter.
Arsenal’s clashes against Manchester Untied typify this. During all of the Gunners’ clash with the Red Devils, Arsenal dominate possession yet they lack the final product and United finish off Arsenal on the counter.
Arsenal’s style is by no effective but it does have its flaws. I’m not stating that Arsenal should abandon their entire game but all they need to do is bring in some variety.
Arsenal have players like Bendtner, Chamakh in their ranks who with their physical presence represent two extremely potent aerial threats especially the latter. Arsenal should look to exploit their physical presence and they can benefit greatly from having a Plan B.
It will come in handy against structured, organized teams that are difficult to break down and it adds another dimension to the Arsenal attack.
Conclusion
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Some fans have called for the removal of Wenger and for Arsenal to start buying players like some other clubs. But that would be going on the wrong path,
Wenger has built a squad from scratch that requires fine tuning in certain areas. Arsenal have been progressing over the last few seasons and this year they have taken massive steps in the right direction. Arsenal are close to success and they can even end their trophy drought this season.
Wenger’s policy was built around financial safety and stability and it was never going to reap instant rewards. For Arsenal fans now is the time to be patient and support the club. Calls for wholesale changes will not work out and it is ridiculous to suggest any of those changes.
Wenger is a true visionary, a genius who has transformed Arsenal into one of the giants of Europe and success is just around the corner for Wenger and his side.
