Arsenal FC: Why Arsene Wenger Will Be Manager at the End of This Season

Last season represented the sixth straight season which Arsenal went without winning a major trophy, a fact which has seen several fans turn against Arsenal’s most successful manager, Arsene Wenger.

Even until last season, Wenger was revered within the fan with only a minority of the fans actually against Wenger as the manager of Arsenal. But following last season’s shocking elimination against Birmingham in the Carling Cup, and following the Gunners’ traditional late season collapse that saw them miss out on the league when they instead should have won it, the clamor for Wenger’s exit has intensified with now the fans hugely divided on whether the respected Frenchman should stay with the Gunners.

Right now it is a huge understatement to say that those clamoring for Wenger’s exit is a minority.

Usually, when it comes to a football club, most of the harsh criticism arises from those who aren’t fans of the club. But with Arsenal, that is hardly proving to be the case. A large number of Wenger’s critics arise from supporters of the club themselves. Rarely has a club seen such a divided fan base. Sometimes I get the feeling that the rivalry between the pro-Wenger supporters and the anti-Wenger supporters is as harsh as the sense of rivalry running between Arsenal and Spurs fans. While that might be an overstatement of sorts, there is no denying that there exists two fan bases, both which differ vastly on what they believe to be the course of future action regarding Arsenal.

This kind of rivalry is not healthy for the club but, the fact of the matter is, it exists and Wenger has to deal with it. No matter how admirably his side performs next season, the only way he can silence his numerous critics is by winning a trophy and by proving that he still has it.

If Wenger fails next season, it is vastly plausible that those presently on his side could, very well, turn against him and call for his head.

What Wenger has managed with a limited budget is stuff of legends but, right now, with a vastly improved transfer kitty and with a hugely talented squad, Wenger has to win a trophy.

Another season without a trophy would seriously jeopardize Arsenal’s stature as a top club, and that is another reason why the fans are so desperate for a trophy.

Recently, Ivan Gazidis told the supporters that they themselves will finally play a part in whether Wenger retains his job:

"Arsene is ultimately accountable to the fans," he said. "If you are seeing the relationship between the fans and manager break down over time that is unsustainable. But I don't think we are anywhere near that."

But another season without a trophy,  and the relationship between the fans and the manager would certainly break down. Even now people have been calling for Wenger to be sacked and a trophy has to be achieved for the Frenchman to keep his job as Arsenal manager.

Wenger’s financial approach will mean that the board will be delighted with his performances. Arsenal are substantially close to balancing the financially records, and with profits at an all time high and with debts at an all time low, the board is more than happy.

That is one of the reasons why Arsene Wenger still has his job. But if the Gunners fail next season, the fans might turn against the club to such an extent that failing to sack Wenger might alienate the fans to such a degree that the club is detrimentally affected.

And yet, despite all of this, I believe Arsene Wenger will remain as manager for another two seasons at least and that is by winning a trophy next season.

I am a Wenger fan, so his critics might call me delusional, yet I believe Arsenal do stand a fair chance of winning a trophy next season.

If recent reports are to be believed, one could be excused for believing that Wenger and his Arsenal side have entered a crisis. So many of the reports have been professing the doom of Arsenal and the demise of the club from the top four.

A large part of this stems from the fact that the future of Arsenal’s two most talented midfielders, Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas, have been shrouded in a spate of reports linking them with a move away from the club. Wenger recently stated that he will retain the services of the duo.

While the future of Fabregas is still uncertain, especially if Barcelona stump up the required fee (which seems highly unlikely and instead they will most probably ask Xavi to launch another press conference pleading with Wenger to stop "torturing" Fabregas), Nasri is expected to stay with the Gunners for another season at least. This, combined with the rise of Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere, added with the brilliant capture of Gervinho, means that Arsenal will have plenty of strength in midfield even if Fabregas decides to leave.

Prior to the start of the transfer window, Wenger stated that he had a large kitty to spend, and while he hasn’t exercised his transfer muscle yet, Gazidis’ recent statements might have reassured the fans that solid signings might be on their way:

"We still will be active in this window," said Mr Gazidis. "We haven't finished our business at all. We're just not conducting it publicly; we're working hard privately." This shows the fans that the defensive signings that Wenger promised might be on its way and Arsenal will go into the season ready to fire.

Following Arsenal’s poor end to the season, which saw their defense struggle, people have been ripping apart Arsenal’s defense and you might even be persuaded to believe that it is one of the worst in the league.

Let me assure you that the defense is far better than people portray it to be. It wasn’t the best, but it definitely isn’t as bad as people indicate it to be. Very often when criticism pours in, it comes heavily and the same has proved to be the case.

People have forgotten Arsenal’s solid defensive performances against the likes of Manchester United and City, Chelsea, Barcelona, Everton and Wolves to just name a few. There was even a period when Arsenal conceded a mere goal in close to 600 minutes which happened to be offside. Laurent Koscielny and Djourou were both fantastic, with Koscielny proving to be solid even towards the end of the season and will only improve in his second season in the EPL.

So, while the defense requires an addition of maybe Gary Cahill or Christopher Samba or both, it is fairly good and still among the top four in the league and can only improve with another addition.

So, the addition of a new defensive player, combined with the return of Thomas Vermaelen, who missed the whole of last season save for five matches, Arsenal should have a solid defense. And, not to mention, right back where the Gunners have the league's best right back in Bacary Sagna, who was a rock last season, proving to be a beacon of consistency in yet another inconsistent season. 

This means that Arsenal will be heading into next season with two solid goalkeepers in Lukasz Fabianski and Wojciech Szczesny, a luxury they haven’t had in recent times, a defense that will most probably be strengthened and will also have a fit and ready-to-fire Thomas Vermaelen and an established pair in Koscielny and Djourou.

Arsenal’s midfield is a minefield of talent, brimming with talented players like Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Andrei Arshavin, Gervinho and Nasri. Even if Fabregas does leave, Arsenal have both Ramsey and Nasri to fill his gap and Wenger has the kitty to buy another replacement as well. Fabregas' departure from Arsenal is far from certain with Wenger doing his best to retain his talisman and captain. 

Up front, while Bendtner may leave, the Gunners have Robin van Persie, the league’s best striker right now, and have an able deputy in Marouane Chamakh who can only improve in his second season at the Emirates.

Other than this, there are several other players and youngsters including Ryo Miyaichi, Carl Jenkinson, Tomas Rosicky and Carlos Vela who can all prove to be important squad players during the course of the season.

Overall, the Gunners have a supremely talented side whose flaws have been vastly overstated and hence giving an appearance of being in shambles.

In Arsene Wenger, Arsenal have one of the league’s best managers. Despite his recent failures, he still remains a widely respected and highly successful manager and he still has the quality to lead the Gunners to glory.

This is another reason why the Gunners can be expected to win a trophy. Last season we saw how distraught Wenger was, showing his commitment and passion to win a trophy. That passion and commitment wouldn’t have gone down one bit. Right now, Wenger has only one goal and that is to win a trophy. This determination, coupled with a hint of desperation, means that Wenger will be motivated and yearning to have another go at the league and the cup competitions. Even the players have expressed their desire to end the trophy drought, and this desire will channelize into further belief that can win them the championship.

The lessons learned from last season might prove to be invaluable, both tactically and psychologically. 

Last season, despite what some may say, there is no denying that the Gunners had a great chance to win a trophy. They performed well in the league for so long and seemed to have a great chance only to throw it away.

While it is also true that Arsenal's rivals will come back stronger, especially Chelsea and United, Arsenal too will be stronger than last season, considering the arrival of Gervinho and factoring in new arrivals. Also, in Van Persie they have a striker who was unstoppable last season. 

This season, with improved depth, quality additions and with the flops seemingly being axed, Arsenal will be back stronger and harder to win a trophy and silence their many detractors.