Arsene "Hmmm"grr

Arsene “When”grr comes across as a coach who likes to bring young talent through(as I’ve mentioned before). And everyone praises him for that. They call him a great manager who has done wonders with kids. At the same time, he’s criticized for his reluctance to buy big. He nurtures relatively unknown young talent and makes them into “Big” players. Henry, Vieira, Ljunberg, Fabregas to name a few.

But there might be another angle to this. The fact that he has hardly bought 4 or 5 “Big” players at a time means that he has not managed 4 or 5 “Big”(bought) players simultaneously(above 25 years of age). Yes, he has managed Henry, Vieira etc etc but most of them were with him from a young age. Yes, he did manage a Bergkamp and now an Arshavin(whom he has bought "Big") but look at his other “Big” players. Most of them were already there. Can he be called a great manager without having to manage Big egos? Is this the reason he is reluctant to leave Arsenal and go to a Madrid for instance?

Hmmm, something to think about…

Arsene "When"grrr

I bet thats the question on every Arsenal fan's mind. When!!! When is Arsenal going to win something next? The better question would be "Why". Why is Arsenal not able to win anything. They play beautiful football. They have fantastic youngsters coming through.

But......

Beautiful football doesnt guarentee silverware. Kids are highly unlikely to win you silverware. Gone are the days of Henry, Vieira, Bergkamp, Keown, Adams, Parlour etc etc. Phew, quite a team that one. They always had someone who could put their foot in when need be. They also had a blend of experience mixed with the kids.

In my opinion, a team with the stature of Arsenal should consist of 7-8 experienced players with 3-4 kids thrown in. Quite the opposite of what it currently is.

Talking about the kids, one has to be in awe seeing the number of kids coming through the ranks at Arsenal. But I wonder how many of them have noticed that, most of these players peak when they are kids itself and are then shipped out. Once they move on, they are hardly the shadow of the player they once promised to become. David Bentley and Jermaine Pennant to name a few. How many kids from the Arsenal team have gone on to play for Arsenal after they become "experienced"? Something to ponder about, Mr. Wenger?

Coming to the lack of experience, many of you might have noticed that, Wenger, more often than not buys a player whose age is <= 20. Why is Wenger hesitant to buy experienced players? He always says "The future's looking good". When is he going to concentrate on "Now"? He has to realise thinking about the next game is of no use if you lose the ongoing one.

I have a "When" of my own. When is Wenger going to realise he should be coaching the youth team instead of the first team.
Oh wait...He already is...