Redknapp to Arsenal

[Niall_Quinn]

I started to see problems in 2006, that's where it begun and it grew from there...he should have gone several years ago IMO, he's had way too many chances.

He sold off players (top players) without any kind of proper planning, you can't just let players go without having someone in there to take their place and over the years he's repeated this time and time again, at the same time he put his faith in kids who never really looked capable of taking the mantle and had noone to learn from in any case.

The environment he's been working with is taken into consideration to an extent, but we sold players for a profit and I refuse to believe he couldn't have re-invested that, the problem when he did spend he spent it badly on cheap nobodies who failed to deliver (some of which we are lumbered with), he also enforced a wage policy which effectively crippled us in the transfer market when it comes to being competitive on the salary side.

The billionaires argument doesn't wash for me, simply because their have been players we could have signed in our budget who would have vastly improved the team, everytime however we've gone down the unknown route, this is typical Wenger wanting to prove the world wrong. Our lack of ambition has in the end meant our top players didn't want to stick around (which suits the club to a t).

And now 6 years down the line where are we? Still scrimping around for bargain basement buys to placate fans who have to watch the clubs best players leave....now to clubs who once were our fiercest rivals (something that would have been unthinkable 6 years ago).

And yet the previous shareholders have slinked off with half a billion in their wallets and the new guy go around the stadium on hands and knees seeing if anyone left change behind. Do you not factor this at all into your reckoning and try to place Wenger's job into a more realistic context? I don't say I agree with his solidarity with these obnoxious bastards but even then the employer/ employee realities have to be considered. It's really not as simple as you make out.

[Özim]

And yet the previous shareholders have slinked off with half a billion in their wallets and the new guy go around the stadium on hands and knees seeing if anyone left change behind. Do you not factor this at all into your reckoning and try to place Wenger's job into a more realistic context? I don't say I agree with his solidarity with these obnoxious bastards but even then the employer/ employee realities have to be considered. It's really not as simple as you make out.

I'm more than aware of the slimebags at the top, I remember slating PHW many years ago and people telling me how he was a great man who did so much for the club and love it so dearly....I saw through it.

It doesn't change the fact Wenger has spent the money badly and enforced a ridiculous pay policy, his decision on the pitch have also been bizarre...and that's ignoring his unflappable belief in players which had never earnt the right to even play for us.

The board are a big problem as well no question, but Wenger takes as much of the blame for me, he could have done so much differently which would have given us a far better chance of success, he's been unwilling to and has continued to support failing methods despite the clear indications right in front of his eyes.

[Olivier's xmas twist]

That dismal cup final victory was the start of the downward slide for me. Our philosophy was torn up that day and it was the first of many capitulations to come, even though we did a Liverpool on them and stole it.

Yep, This is when it was realised that we could make money of our better players tbh. Cause before this i don't think we sold anybody of value tbh. I mean in the time we moved to the stadium.

[Joker]

I disagree with Zim RE: Redknapp but the way he's been hounded by certain posters (not just in this thread) is pathetic. And it's always the same techniques, posting sarcastic pictures, making snide remarks about him indirectly and sometimes it's simple abuse.
Surely some of the off topic crap certain posters use to disrupt debates should be deleted?

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Yeah it should but I don't remember you posting to say something similar the other day when Charlie was getting his posts taken down from numerous other posters.

[GP]

I disagree with Zim RE: Redknapp but the way he's been hounded by certain posters (not just in this thread) is pathetic. And it's always the same techniques, posting sarcastic pictures, making snide remarks about him indirectly and sometimes it's simple abuse.
Surely some of the off topic crap certain posters use to disrupt debates should be deleted?

He's a blatant WUM and so was given short shrift. Get off your high horse.

[Niall_Quinn]

I'm more than aware of the slimebags at the top, I remember slating PHW many years ago and people telling me how he was a great man who did so much for the club and love it so dearly....I saw through it.

It doesn't change the fact Wenger has spent the money badly and enforced a ridiculous pay policy, his decision on the pitch have also been bizarre...and that's ignoring his unflappable belief in players which had never earnt the right to even play for us.

The board are a big problem as well no question, but Wenger takes as much of the blame for me, he could have done so much differently which would have given us a far better chance of success, he's been unwilling to and has continued to support failing methods despite the clear indications right in front of his eyes.

But the "told you so" attitude doesn't seem to take into account the fact almost everyone has been smacking their heads over some of Wenger's policies. There aren't any 100% pro posters on this forum that I can see. The question is, in light of everything that has been happening at the club, taking all that into consideration, is it time for Wenger to go? 7 or 5 or even 3 years ago my answer would be no, because there was still a chance the stated objectives could materialise. Now we see fairly clearly it was a giant con designed to enrich a few individuals at the expense of the club as a whole.

In hindsight, a wonderful thing, protests should have started the day the foundations of the new stadium were driven. But back then most were caught up in this bullshit vision of us competing at the top, yes certainly in terms of the balance sheet but with the understanding the revenue generated would be poured onto the pitch. That's fairly enticing and seemed a reasonable progression for a club that was on the up. The fact a few clever bastards would hijack the whole vision didn't enter into my mind at the time. Can you really say it entered your head?

So all we really had to work with was the tumbleweed blowing across the transfer thread and the general weirdness of certain aspects of Wenger's management style. Offset that against a collection of nearly, maybe, if only seasons and backstop it with a remarkable track record from previous years and it's difficult to just say sack the manager. The fans were living in hope. What else is there when you have zero control or influence?

[Niall_Quinn]

I disagree with Zim RE: Redknapp but the way he's been hounded by certain posters (not just in this thread) is pathetic. And it's always the same techniques, posting sarcastic pictures, making snide remarks about him indirectly and sometimes it's simple abuse.
Surely some of the off topic crap certain posters use to disrupt debates should be deleted?

We should form a committee to unambiguously define the necessary limitations of fun.

[Özim]

He's a blatant WUM and so was given short shrift. Get off your high horse.

Funny you should say that because aren't you the one that rarely posts anything of interest and never has any input into threads other than putting smiley faces and posting stupid pictures?

Pot calling the kettle black if you ask me, or anyone in fact.

[Özim]

But the "told you so" attitude doesn't seem to take into account the fact almost everyone has been smacking their heads over some of Wenger's policies. There aren't any 100% pro posters on this forum that I can see. The question is, in light of everything that has been happening at the club, taking all that into consideration, is it time for Wenger to go? 7 or 5 or even 3 years ago my answer would be no, because there was still a chance the stated objectives could materialise. Now we see fairly clearly it was a giant con designed to enrich a few individuals at the expense of the club as a whole.

In hindsight, a wonderful thing, protests should have started the day the foundations of the new stadium were driven. But back then most were caught up in this bullshit vision of us competing at the top, yes certainly in terms of the balance sheet but with the understanding the revenue generated would be poured onto the pitch. That's fairly enticing and seemed a reasonable progression for a club that was on the up. The fact a few clever bastards would hijack the whole vision didn't enter into my mind at the time. Can you really say it entered your head?

So all we really had to work with was the tumbleweed blowing across the transfer thread and the general weirdness of certain aspects of Wenger's management style. Offset that against a collection of nearly, maybe, if only seasons and backstop it with a remarkable track record from previous years and it's difficult to just say sack the manager. The fans were living in hope. What else is there when you have zero control or influence?

What I was looking at was what happened on the pitch to be honest and from where I was standing it wasn't pretty, I wasn't pleased with the style, tactics and more often than no signings.....none of these aspects were forced on Wenger.

At the same time the amount of excuses coming out of his mouth increased and we saw a belief in failing methods never before seen at a top club, a stubborn streak which compounded our problems by preventing Wenger adapting and making the necessary changes, however simply and clear to see.

Maybe he had restrictions, it doesn't excuse his performance on the pitch or indeed his signings, that same money used could have been used for better more suitable players, I guess the problem is those players maybe didn't do everything, they simply excelled at one or two apsects of play, which of course never satisfied Wenger.