Thursday, 13 December 2012

I'm no AKB but stop this Wenger witch-hunt!

It's a feeding frenzy! Knee-jerk reaction city! And it's unhealthy. I'm certainly no Wenger apologist, but calls for Wenger's head seem premature. Yes, it was humiliating getting knocked out of the Capital One Cup. And yes, something is terribly wrong at the club, right now. Strange things are going on. Podolski has been 'under the weather' (which sounded like a new definition of 'pathetic fallacy' to me) and has not been the same since. Arshavin has disappeared under mysterious circumstances, amid news in the Metro that he will never play for Arsenal again. Why? What has the meerkat done wrong? Too many Compare The Market commercials? Who knows? Also, who knows why Theo Walcott hasn't signed a new deal yet. Is it because Wenger won't play him as striker? Is that the same thing that has caused Podolski to become 'under the weather' and to lose his form? The phrase 'architect of your own downfall' comes to mind, when discussing Wenger, right now. But Reading and Wigan away are his main concerns for now. It's all about the next game. Surely, two wins and six points will change our negative perceptions. Meanwhile, 51% of ESPN viewers in a poll say Arsenal should decide Wenger's future in May. I think that would be fair. Pep Guardiola would probably be a good fit, when it comes to a successor, but there's no guarantee that he would hit the ground running. Especially not with this team. Having said that, Arsenal looked like Barcelona-lite versus the highly-placed WBA with a midfield triumvirate of Arteta, Cazorla and Wilshere. Take one of the trio out of the equation and we end up with an unholy trinity! Okay, that's a bit hyperbolic, but we certainly don't dominate games with Coquelin (for all his merits) in there instead of Arteta. So the return of Arteta could make all the difference. Oh, and Giroud, if he recovers from his back injury. These two players are key to our success. Gervinho upfront is an experiment that hasn't worked enough to justify sticking with it. Wenger's stubborn belief in Gervinho as a striker will make us lose points and players, as Podolski and Walcott become frustrated watching the Ivorian miss more than strike in front of goal. Let's hope Wenger wakes up and smells the coffee. He can still turn this season around. I'm not expecting a trophy now, but (like Wenger) I'll be satisfied with 4th place. Anything less than that, and I'll consider calling for his head too.

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