Afrogunner wokeup feeling great this morning! The weather was cool last night, little Afrogooney slept quietly with daddy as she so loves, especially when Mrs. Afrogunner is away on duty. I kept looking at her pretty little face and wondering... 'Holy crap, she is half me and half Mrs. Afrogunner'... The wonders of nature and biology... Then I would browse the channels hoping to find a breaking story about a new Arsenal signing... eventually I lay my head down next to Afrogooney and passed into dreamland.
I woke up at 4:45am, went jogging at 5:15am and was back home at 6am.. eh in time for Sky Sports News... but still no signing for Arsenal. I did the school run, got in the office and I have been F5-ing my keyboard since 8am...
This story on the Arsenal website made me laugh but then it started to irritate me. I sincerely hope he is just playing his cards very close to his chest. According to Arsene Wenger the club is "working hard" to find what they want. Now, I love cars. In fact I want cars, lots of cars. I want a Bugatti Veyron, a Range Rover Sport, an ML63 AMG, an Audi RS6.... But what I need is a double cab bakkie. I realise due to my lifestyle, something in the mould of a Toyota Hilux, VW Amarok or Nissan Navara will suit me just fine. Can I afford to buy a brand new car in this economy and on my current pay? No! So what do I do? well, I can look at the used car market for such a vehicle. Alternatively, I could look at Chinese products such as GWM, Foton etc. Do I really want those brands? No! But can they deliver what I need? Hell yes!
You are, by now wondering what I'm going on about... Well, you see, for me to buy the double cab Toyota Hilux or VW Amarok that I need, I must start saving and planning when to acquire it in the near future. I did not just wake up this morning and realise or decide that I need a double cab.
So when Arsene Wenger says this:
First of all Arsene, our squad is not that good, if you need evidence of that, just look at the results we have had so far this season. Take a look at the gap between our team and Manchester United who sit top of the table. That should show you that our squad is not that good.
This bit really rubs salt in the wound:
I woke up at 4:45am, went jogging at 5:15am and was back home at 6am.. eh in time for Sky Sports News... but still no signing for Arsenal. I did the school run, got in the office and I have been F5-ing my keyboard since 8am...
This story on the Arsenal website made me laugh but then it started to irritate me. I sincerely hope he is just playing his cards very close to his chest. According to Arsene Wenger the club is "working hard" to find what they want. Now, I love cars. In fact I want cars, lots of cars. I want a Bugatti Veyron, a Range Rover Sport, an ML63 AMG, an Audi RS6.... But what I need is a double cab bakkie. I realise due to my lifestyle, something in the mould of a Toyota Hilux, VW Amarok or Nissan Navara will suit me just fine. Can I afford to buy a brand new car in this economy and on my current pay? No! So what do I do? well, I can look at the used car market for such a vehicle. Alternatively, I could look at Chinese products such as GWM, Foton etc. Do I really want those brands? No! But can they deliver what I need? Hell yes!
You are, by now wondering what I'm going on about... Well, you see, for me to buy the double cab Toyota Hilux or VW Amarok that I need, I must start saving and planning when to acquire it in the near future. I did not just wake up this morning and realise or decide that I need a double cab.
So when Arsene Wenger says this:
"First of all we want to sort out the injuries we have,
and we are trying very hard to close the deal with Walcott. Once we have done
that, we will certainly do something else. At the moment I cannot tell you
more.
Sort out the injuries we have? really Arsene? How do you 'sort them out'? This is the most stupid thing a manager can say to fans who are hoping to see some fresh faces added to the squad. Our injuries are always the same every year so what the hell is Arsene talking about when he says he is 'sorting them out'? Why didn't he 'sort them out' for the past 7 years running?
And trying very hard to close the deal with Walcott? Give me a fucking break! If that boy wanted to stay he would have long signed. Two years ago. Stop wasting time with him. By the time you finish with him and turn to 'something else' the transfer window will be closed.
He goes on to say:
"It has become more difficult [to buy players in
January] for one simple reason: we have a good squad. I know we swim against
the stream a bit because people don’t believe that. I say we have a very good
squad.
"But we have some improvements to make and we know
exactly where. In January it is difficult to find the players that are really
better and can give something special to the squad. The number is right, we
have a good balance and we are working very hard to find what we want."
For fuck sake Arsene get a grip man! First You don't buy players in summer because they are difficult to find and you have a very good squad. You play half the season and the results show you that your squad is not as good as you thought when you went into the season but instead of strengthening you stand up and say you have a very good squad and it's difficult to buy good players in January? This is insanity.
Where is the planning? Where is the forward thinking? I am not suggesting that we should start tapping up players, but in football, deals start getting done during the season and come the transfer window they are formalised. Thats how it works. We didn't just up and sign Marouane Chamakh; it's becasue he had an understanding with Arsenal that he wound down his contract at Bordeaux. And that's how transfers are done.
What the hell is the so-called scouting team doing when the season is running? Ins't that the time they should be 'scouting and identifying' potential signings? If Arsenal were really serious about turning this club into a serious title contender, we would be seeing evidence in the manner is which they go about trying to strengthen the club. But instead there is a sense of 'we are ok as long as we finish 4th'.
I really hate this finishing 4th business. Arsene Wenger and the Board must stop setting the bar so low because even our players are picking up on it. They know their manager is aiming for 4th so that's what they aim for too. When they eventually want to seriously win trophies, they will leave our club and go elsewhere. Meanwhile, they are playig for a big club, getting huge pay but aiming for low targets. We can insult Robin Van Pussie all we like but the truth is the truth. Arsenal's ambition is to finish 4th every season, not to win the League and it shows in the conduct of the club, the manager and the players.
Until the Board change their ambitions and apply pressure on the Manager, we shall continue to shit our pants wondering if we shall finish 4th every season and when we do, we shall be content with Champions League football. Forget about the Premier League; Arsenal don't aim to play in the Champions League to win the competition, we want to be in the competition of financial reasons every season. It is the same with the League I suppose. If we can finish 4th every season and continue to bring in match-day and television revenue, then the Board is happy.
This club has stagnated and unless something transforms very soon, we shall disappear into mid-table mediocrity for good as other clubs progress past us. By the time Wenger goes, we shall be worse off than we were when he took over because the game has changed a lot since then.
I would really love Wenger to go out on a high, but it is looking ever more unlikely.
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