Arsenal FC: Why Stan Kroenke Will Sack Arsene Wenger After This Season

Despite Arsenal's horrid start to the season, new owner Stan Kroenke recently gave a very strong vote of confidence to beleaguered manager Arsene Wenger.

Loyal supporters of Wenger were surely encouraged by some of the first public words uttered by the man popularly known as "Silent Stan," but many were questioning the wisdom of this phantom businessman who so wholeheartedly backs a manager with no recent success.

After all, Wenger has not won anything since 2005, and the period in which Kroenke voiced his support is by far the worst in the 15 years of the Frenchman's reign. It's one thing to like the man, but what are you actually voicing you support for?

If Arsenal continue along their current track, though, this question will not even need to be asked. Kroenke will not be singing the praises of his manager at all, in fact. Rather, Kroenke will be calling his manager into his office to thank him for his time at the club, but telling him it is at its conclusion.

Because, in the end, Kroenke is a businessman at his core, and despite his affection for Wenger (who I am sure is quite a likable person), the reasons for Wenger's departure will be entirely driven by business interests.

While the Gunners are surely at no risk of relegation despite their horrid run of form and dearth of quality, they are in no position to reach the coveted fourth position in the Premier League table—in other words, Champions League nirvana.

And, despite the fact that Arsenal supporters have not needed to concern themselves with this fact for more than a decade, the financial consequences of not reaching the promised land are massive.

According to UEFA, each team that reaches the group stages of the Champions League can expect to receive a minimum of €7.2 million, with a potential profit of €31.5 million if they should win—a tremendous amount of money into any team's coffers, especially if they do not reinvest it.

Though their form and the level of their competition would certainly not indicate it at present, for the sake of argument let us suppose that Arsenal rise to fifth place in the table. The Europa League is certainly a much less promised land, but it is a land.

Using UEFA's data once again, the stark contrast between the prestige of the two competitions is clearly evident. Instead of €7.2 million, clubs get about €1 million for participating, and a potential profit of only a few million Euros for winning, depending on the number of wins and draws they should accumulate.

And, according to ESPNSoccernet, Arsenal made a whopping £26 million from their Champions League exploits last year. Quite a bit of income to suddenly lose.

Aside from the nitty-gritty of the financial data, merely qualifying for the Europa League would greatly hurt Arsenal from a footballing perspective, as well. Matches are played on Thursdays, rather than the Champions League's Wednesday fixtures, and thus there is little time for recovery before a weekend Premier League game.

Thus, the Gunners would suffer the consequences of European play in domestic competitions, increasing their already-extremely-high propensity for injuries, and reducing their ability to compete at a high level in other competitions.

Then there is the disaster scenario, which with the rise of Spurs and Liverpool, seems ever more likely. Could it possibly be that a year of European football could go by without Arsenal playing in a single fixture?

If this run of form continues for much longer, it could become more of an inevitability than a mere possibility. And one has to admit, the Gunners are currently playing with all the skill of a mid-table team.

Surely, none of this is lost on Stan Kroenke. The owner of several sports franchises and an intelligent person, he is as aware as any fan of what the consequences of continued stagnation are.

And Kroenke is obviously aware that this decline is a trend, and is not some incredible fluke that no one could have foreseen.

After all, the longer the club stays in this rut, the harder it will become to pull it out. The badge will begin to lose its sheen as players see a club that is not a threat to the trophies they so desperately crave.

So, putting all friendships aside, and looking at the financial aspects and the future problems Arsenal would encounter, Kroenke will make the decision that will be made relatively easy for him.

After many years of success, it will be time, as it always eventually is, for a new era to be ushered in at a club that will not be able to stand in place any longer.

Because, in the end, Stan Kroenke will need to protect his most valuable asset—Arsenal Football Club.

Follow me on Twitter: @AmeriGooner