The next manager..

[I am invisible]

The only issue about the youth development is our youths aren't that good. Losing Aubameyang and/or Lacazette might well be terminal for us, they pretty much score all our goals, without them we'd be in real trouble.

Right now it's not looking good, we're in a downward spiral and it looks likes the club is choosing to embark on some sort of youth project MKII, the first one was an utter disaster. Anyway I don't trust the club to get anything right, generally they make the wrong choice. Everytime we're at a crossroads there's hope we can change direction and move forward again, but evertime the club disappoints and effectively cements our place as a club who can no longer compete.

Football is full of clubs like us, clubs who were even more successful, AC Milan for example, we're the English version and sadly with the way things are going I'm not sure it can be reversed. We've been complacent for too long, when 4th place is the limit of your ambition eventually clubs catch up and overtake you an that's exactly what's happened.

Nah, we’ve got some good kids here, mate - they’re just suffering badly from a chronic lack of leadership and any kind of vision to buy into / believe in. They were doing great at the start of the year, playing some great stuff, but the confidence and enthusiasm has drained away from them the longer they’ve spent around Emery and this group of senior players. They’re looking to these guys as mentors, looking for guidance, and all the see is mistakes, apathy and grown men who have given up and are happy to just take a wage and let their careers peter out. It’s got to be soul-destroying for a young player, at the start of an exciting career, and I honestly think they’d be getting on better without any of them right now.

You say we’re choosing to go down this route, but I think it’s more a case of having backed ourselves into a corner, with no other route out. The accounts show we’re now making a loss as a club, and that’s only going to compound, year on year now, unless we cut costs and rebuild on a more sustainable footing. We all agree that Özil, Xhaka, Luiz, Sokratis, Kolasinac and Mustafi need to be sold, right, but how much are they likely to bring in to fund replacements? Xhaka might bring in something, but the others will be nominal fees or giveaways to get them off the wage bill. Ceballos also goes back to Madrid at the end of the year, so that’s 7 players we might need to replace with very little money coming into fund it.

That means, if we’re serious about any kind of rebuild, then we’ll have to look at selling guys like Aubameyang and Lacazette (and maybe even Bellerin and Torreira) for as much as possible. But, of course, any of those players who go will also need to be replaced, and that’s on top of the 7 above!

All of which means we’re probably going to have to make a little go a long, long way where recruitment is concerned, and will have the usual choice of promising, yet unproven youth vs journeymen older players (or complete unknowns). Even then I think we’re going to have to fill in some blanks from the academy.

No one’s arguing that it’s not an embarrassing state for a club like ours to find ourselves in, but it is where we find ourselves, and we have to deal with it. Honestly, fuck teams like AC Milan - they haven’t modernised, and are still trying to dine off their name and past success, so they deserve everything that’s happening to them. And, quite frankly, fuck Arsenal too, if we also think we’re too big to just fade away - this absolutely can be reversed, but we need to get with the programme, fast, or we’re going to get left behind by the Leicesters and Leipzigs of this world who are getting it right (on less than we’re working with)...

[Niall_Quinn]

Well if it ends badly then we can sack Arteta and bring in Alladyce or Pulis to save us from relegation.

We won't get relegated. There is enough quality on the pitch to scrape up enough points regardless of the disorganisation, and there are plenty of shitty teams in this league who we can nick points from. It's whether somebody can grab hold of this and make the fundamental changes required to prevent us having to scrap from 40 points next season and the season after. If we don't get things sorted by the end of this season then it's conceivable we'd be in a real relegation fight this time next year. In fact it's more likely that's where we'll be, compared to challenging for the coveted, erotic, blissful Top 4 Trophy that seems the be-all end-all for this deeply ambitious club and half its fans.

[Bumble]

We won't get relegated. There is enough quality on the pitch to scrape up enough points regardless of the disorganisation, and there are plenty of shitty teams in this league who we can nick points from. It's whether somebody can grab hold of this and make the fundamental changes required to prevent us having to scrap from 40 points next season and the season after. If we don't get things sorted by the end of this season then it's conceivable we'd be in a real relegation fight this time next year. In fact it's more likely that's where we'll be, compared to challenging for the coveted, erotic, blissful Top 4 Trophy that seems the be-all end-all for this deeply ambitious club and half its fans.

i was being a bit sarcastic - although if we sell laca and auba not totally sure how we would stay up without replacing them. I guess the club are going to go to a youth project with the appointment of arteta and hopefully the match day prices will reflect that. be interesting to see how sponsorship etc will be affected by the lack of a competitive team.

[Globalgunner]

So the solution to a less than competitive team will be a team that can barely survive the EPL. As we saw with Liverpool kids getting tanked by an average Villa team yesterday, kids are rarely up to the task.
What this team needs is a manager with tactical discipline who the players would look up to. If i were Kroenke I would ignore the clearly inept dolts running this club and go for the Atletico Madrid manager. Signs are that Simeone may be ready to move on. He is exactly what this team and club needs. He brings the presence and tactical nous this team needs and will within 6 months sort the wheat from the chaff of our bunch of dilettantes.
God! sometimes I fkn hate this club called Arsenal. Success means nothing to the morons in charge. Change the fkn tape, tear up the script!. Turn a new corner.

the competition in the EPL is only going to get harder from here on. Money is still pouring into the EPL. Poor clubs will soon be billionaire rich and we will be trundling on behind claiming poverty

[I am invisible]

i was being a bit sarcastic - although if we sell laca and auba not totally sure how we would stay up without replacing them. I guess the club are going to go to a youth project with the appointment of arteta and hopefully the match day prices will reflect that. be interesting to see how sponsorship etc will be affected by the lack of a competitive team.

They’d need to be replaced, pronto, but we’d have to take a note out of Liverpool’s book (i.e. when they sold off Suarez, Sterling and Coutinho, brought in a bunch of less-fashionable replacement forwards for a fraction of the money and put the rest into overhauling the failing areas of their side). We keep casting envious eyes at them and the team they’ve put together, but even now we have some assets here that would allow us to attempt something similar - I just question whether anyone at the club actually has the neck to do it.

Who knows, though? Maybe it won’t be necessary to sell those guys, and the club are sitting on more money than they’re making public? Maybe getting the other big earners off the wage bill will be enough, if we can then pay for new players in instalments? I look at these things in a far more basic way and right now I’m just really struggling to see how we finance the overhaul we desperately need without sacrificing Auba and Laca (and probably a couple of others too).

[Bumble]

They’d need to be replaced, pronto, but we’d have to take a note out of Liverpool’s book (i.e. when they sold off Suarez, Sterling and Coutinho, brought in a bunch of less-fashionable replacement forwards for a fraction of the money and put the rest into overhauling the failing areas of their side). We keep casting envious eyes at them and the team they’ve put together, but even now we have some assets here that would allow us to attempt something similar - I just question whether anyone at the club actually has the neck to do it.

Who knows, though? Maybe it won’t be necessary to sell those guys, and the club are sitting on more money than they’re making public? Maybe getting the other big earners off the wage bill will be enough, if we can then pay for new players in instalments? I look at these things in a far more basic way and right now I’m just really struggling to see how we finance the overhaul we desperately need without sacrificing Auba and Laca (and probably a couple of others too).

i think we will need to sell those guys because I don't think Auba is going to want to play a few seasons outside of Europe at his age. Laca is still marketable and if we can sell him to Barca then we can get a lot of money for him. Plus I think there is an issue as its either/or with Auba and Laca on the pitch. We have a few sellable assets Leno who I think has shown himself to be a good keeper, will attract interest. Bellerin possibly although with the injuries I don't think he is back to where he was.

Arteta as the new manager is fairly underwhelming and a huge gamble although Wenger has backed him so that's good.

[Globalgunner]

i think we will need to sell those guys because I don't think Auba is going to want to play a few seasons outside of Europe at his age. Laca is still marketable and if we can sell him to Barca then we can get a lot of money for him. Plus I think there is an issue as its either/or with Auba and Laca on the pitch. We have a few sellable assets Leno who I think has shown himself to be a good keeper, will attract interest. Bellerin possibly although with the injuries I don't think he is back to where he was.

Arteta as the new manager is fairly underwhelming and a huge gamble although Wenger has backed him so that's good.

Urgh!. How is that any recommendation.?

[Letters]

Yeah, 'cos anyone would be better than Wenger

[Chippy]

Urgh!. How is that any recommendation.?

I think Bumble may have been taking the piss

[Marc Overmars]

Sounds like Arteta could be in charge for the Everton game on Saturday, once compensation is agreed.

Though we’ve apparently pissed off City by not approaching them formally.