Arsenal FC: Has Arsene Wenger Cooked His Goose After Manchester Massacre

North London has officially been engulfed in flames Sunday at the hands of the city of Manchester. Arsenal gave up eight goals for the first time since before the turn of the century—the 20th century that is.

The last time this proud English club handed eight goals to their opposition was in 1896. To put that into perspective there were no televisions, radios, crossword puzzles or canned beer back in those days. World War I, communism, penicillin and Martin Luther King were all just fairy tales back then.

Arsenal looked to rebound from their Usain Bolt-esque stumble out of the blocks to the start of the new campaign. Wenger even lamented that Sunday's match at Old Trafford signified the true start to their season.

Manchester City started off the day of North London genocidal proceedings with the 5-1 victory over Tottenham as they beat the Spurs into submission. Manchester United, however, refused to be outdone by their "noisy neighbors" and mercilessly slaughtered the frail Arsenal contingent for all the world to see.

The city of Manchester set the North Londoners' hopes of title relevance ablaze.

Arsene Wenger may have officially cooked his goose on Sunday (if it hadn't been in the pot already). His neglectful spending over the summer has irked the Arsenal supporters beyond belief. Wenger, Arsenal fans, all of England and all of Europe knew where the Gunners' weaknesses were, and that certain departures were imminent.

Arsenal needed a centre-half, a replacement at left-back for Gael Clichy, a visionary in the midfield, and a striker to back up Robin van Persie.

None of those had been purchased.

There remains just over two days left in the summer transfer window and Arsene Wenger has done nothing but wallow away his time worrying about buying inexperienced kids that have shown promise for the future. Keyword there being, future. 

Wenger knew for months, not weeks or days, that he more than likely needed a replacement for the homeward bound Cesc Fabregas. His only signing to date that should be worthy of cracking the starting XI has been Gervinho. You could add in the inquiry about the opportune business buy with Park Chu-Young if you wish to defy the kids' only sign that hangs above the Arsenal dressing room, but that would just add injury to insult.

The Arsenal boss has been under fire for quite some time now. Six seasons without a trophy at a club the size of Arsenal should be inexcusable, but Wenger has bought unconventional time in this world of modern football. Sunday his clock seems to be have sped up.

Would a club like Real Madrid, AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Chelsea or Manchester United allow a manager to stay after such a drought? No, they would not. So if Arsenal believes they are one of the top clubs in Europe—and at the moment they are—then why should their policy differ?

All the Arsenal fans throughout the world that kept supporting Arsene Wenger—despite the six-year rough patch—must be rethinking their allegiance to the Frenchman after what they painfully witnessed at Old Trafford.

The economic and football genius has elevated Arsenal to knew heights during his 15-year reign in North London, but that chapter in the club's history must come to a close. Sunday's "humiliating" defeat could be the last straw for any support left in the Wenger hay stack.

Until today, I supported Wenger fearlessly from all the hatred and nay-sayers over the past couple of years. I drank the Kool-Aid. I believed that at a club like Arsenal you must build a team the old-fashioned way: with proper investments, promotions, youth cultivation and hard work. Not simply writing fat checks because you could.

Today my mind has been made up. The man who helped build the Emirates, brought us the "Invincibles" and installed the beloved style of play known the world over has done all he can do.

The consistency of staying in the top four, qualifying for Champions League quarterfinals spots, and competing in the domestic cups year after year is all good and well. That remained a big part of my loyalty to the Frenchman's way of doing business, but it simply does not wash away the gut wrenching feeling Gooners have in the pit of their stomachs tonight. Their worst fears have been realized and their nightmares could quite possibly come to life as the season progresses.

Sometimes a manager can only bring a club to a certain level before his efforts become futile and plateau. Sunday's Manchester massacre may have sealed Wenger's fate if he cannot resurrect his team and pull out what would be nothing short of a miracle to stay in the top four seeing how things currently sit.

Previous success only buys so much time before the lack of production becomes a hindrance rather than an inconvenience.