The fallacy of the long term manager

[Letters]

If he had gone 3 or 4 years ago I think you would be right but I'm afraid the appreciation we have for him gets less every year & by the time he leaves he could well be a hate figure. Fergie did the right thing, pubbed the Premier league with the worst United team in recent history & fucked off. He knew competing against Chelsea & City was going to be difficult & when you had had the success he had, the future was only going to be disappointing for fans of a team that won big trophies every year.

Only the twattiest of internet twats would ever regard him as a hate figure.

What I don't understand is...we did win the FA Cup last year, and the year before that. And finished 4th then 3rd. Wenger's hardly taken us into mid-table, or worse. Clough got Forest relegated and he's still revered up there, all Wenger's done is gone too long without a trophy and we've dropped from 1st to 4th - in no small part due to the billionaires.

We were a bit spoilt by the first half of Wenger's reign but some people's take on how bad things are is way overboard. With our resources we should be pushing harder but the level of criticism he gets is somewhat out of proportion. Moyes showed us what a properly poor manager can do when let lose at a big club.

[Niall_Quinn]

You don't understand what competition is Letters, therefore you can't understand the entirely justifiable criticism a supposed top manager at a supposed top club is attracting.

You are comfortable admitting you find it "understandable" when the team backs off at the tail end of a season because they can no longer win the title. As a matter of fact, for any genuine sportsman, that's not understandable or acceptable in any way, shape or form. You push to the line every time. Your tolerance of less than 100% effort in all things at all times is ample proof you don't understand competition, ambition, pride or any of the other attributes and habits that underpin the winning mentality. Few of us have it, then again few of us get paid millions of pounds to pursue what is supposed to be a passion. As such, we have a team of in the main losers and a manager who has a long track record of losing in the major competitions. Yes, our level is now an accomplished domestic cup team but we had that back in the Terry Neill era when it was £3 a ticket and there was zero talk in the boardroom of dominating Europe or half a billion pound pay-offs. In other words, you are content with the shitty end of the stick. Others aren't and they state as much. Others will understand this easily even when they don't agree. But you don't understand.

Again you want to compare Wenger to anything bar his own record, Clough for example. I doubt they revered him on the day they were being relegated. A couple of decades later and they remember the good in preference to the bad. We'll probably do that too. But for now the team is supposed to be competing at the top of the game, competing mind you because there's nobody here demanding we win every trophy all the time, but we have a manger who is plainly sub-par. Therefore the manager needs to resign or be replaced. That's what happens at every other club and that's what should happen at this club. But, because the owners of the club are onto a nice title earner and their manager of choice is far more proficient at stuffing their pockets than realising the publicly stated ambitions of the club, the manager remains.

Moyes, of course, has nothing to do with this. The situation at Man Utd when Ferguson left and the situation at Arsenal today could hardly be more different.

And Clough won the European Cup while Wenger has has 10 times as many opportunities to do so but hasn't managed it. So maybe it's that ultimate prize the Forest fans remember. No such luck for Arsenal fans. We got close once but these days we are having our arses handed to us by teams like Zagreb and Olympiacos. What I don't understand is how Wenger gets away with it. I'm not sure anyone understand that one.

[Power n Glory]

He’d have been better off tanking badly for one season like Moyes rather than this long drawn out run of failure. It just exposes him even more and will be hard to blot out the flaws once the credits role on his career. If his career were a movie it would probably be Citizen Kane.

[Letters]

You don't understand what competition is Letters.

I understand all kinds of words like "patronizing".


I'll reply properly later, I'm going to have a scone now

[selassie]

Only the twattiest of internet twats would ever regard him as a hate figure.

What I don't understand is...we did win the FA Cup last year, and the year before that. And finished 4th then 3rd. Wenger's hardly taken us into mid-table, or worse. Clough got Forest relegated and he's still revered up there, all Wenger's done is gone too long without a trophy and we've dropped from 1st to 4th - in no small part due to the billionaires.

We were a bit spoilt by the first half of Wenger's reign but some people's take on how bad things are is way overboard. With our resources we should be pushing harder but the level of criticism he gets is somewhat out of proportion. Moyes showed us what a properly poor manager can do when let lose at a big club.

Wenger clearly isn't using his resources correctly, that's why fans are up in arms. What he is doing is akin to gross mismanagement, he has no excuses, it's not like he is being handicapped or is disadvantaged, he has everything he needs to succeed and turn us into an elite club and for one reason or another he is sitting on his hands.

Winning the FA Cup was nice, it was the start of something or so we were lead to believe....

[Niall_Quinn]

I understand all kinds of words like "patronizing".


I'll reply properly later, I'm going to have a scone now

Enjoy the scone but reconsider who is doing the patronising. If you don't appreciate that one then maybe this will help you understand plus it has the bonus of being genuinely patronising.

Letters needs to get from his house (point A) to his job (point B) every morning. It's a long drawn out journey so he takes the bus.

On day #1 the bus turns up, the drivers smiles and he conveys Letters from A to B in double quick time.
Same thing happens on day #2
Same thing happens on day #3 and for the whole week the journey keeps getting faster and faster. Excellent service. Well worth the money.

Next week comes along, Letters takes the bus as usual, driver smiles, puts his foot down and off we go. However, over the weekend roadworks have been set up, there's a hole in the middle of the road. So a small diversion is in place.

Problem is, the bus driver ignores the diversion and continues up the road past all the warning signs. Straight into the hole. Everyone survives and a few passengers grumble about the shitty bus driver who can't follow simple warnings. Letters writes it off as a lapse in concentration. After all, this driver did the business the week before.

Day #2 of the new week dawns. Letters hops on the bus, same driver (a bit patched up but still with a cheery disposition), off we go.

The fucker ignores the signs and drives the bus into the hole. WTF? Everyone survives and more of the passengers have a grumble - what is WRONG with this arsehole? Just follow the bloody sign! A few decide they will walk.

Day #3, on the bus, ignore the sign, bang. In the fucking hole.

Day #4, in the hole, Day #5 in the hole. By day #6 Letters finds he's the only passenger remaining. The driver is in casts and bandages, hardly recognisable but still smiling and chatting as if nothing has happened. But still, bang, in the fucking hole.

Letters asks the driver, what's up with that fucking hole? The driver replies, I am the bus driver - how many buses have you driven? He also notifies Letters the fares are being doubled from tomorrow.

Day #7 dawns.

Now then, what does Letters do?

Does he:

A: Get on the bus and wait until the end of the journey to judge things?
B: Ring the bus company and ask for a better driver?

Yes of course, he gets on the bus. Can anyone predict what happens next?

[Kano]

I agree but the irony is in your last few words " more troubling issues are going to be determined in the boardroom" - a boardroom so weak, pathetic & unscrupulous that they sit at AGM's & confirm the clubs new financial wealth, committing their efforts to make us a top team again whilst allowing Wenger to ruin any chance of moving upwards from last year with the clubs most pathetic efforts to acquire quality in the transfer window. All this why they ask for more money to watch than any other club in Europe. How can we trust these tossers in the boardroom to make any footballing decisions. One of the reasons Wengers holds so much power is that our main owner couldn't tell you a football from a rugby ball.

That's exactly what I mean. The direction of the club will be determined by a board more interested in finance than progression on the pitch. So the the question is, will they sell up once they discover that is impossible once Wenger leaves and if so, what other monster will come and put his dirty paws into our club? We can wish for the current manager to leave but the real turmoil after we leave will come from the shareholders who are are the puppet masters.

[Power n Glory]

Enjoy the scone but reconsider who is doing the patronising. If you don't appreciate that one then maybe this will help you understand plus it has the bonus of being genuinely patronising.

Letters needs to get from his house (point A) to his job (point B) every morning. It's a long drawn out journey so he takes the bus.

On day #1 the bus turns up, the drivers smiles and he conveys Letters from A to B in double quick time.
Same thing happens on day #2
Same thing happens on day #3 and for the whole week the journey keeps getting faster and faster. Excellent service. Well worth the money.

Next week comes along, Letters takes the bus as usual, driver smiles, puts his foot down and off we go. However, over the weekend roadworks have been set up, there's a hole in the middle of the road. So a small diversion is in place.

Problem is, the bus driver ignores the diversion and continues up the road past all the warning signs. Straight into the hole. Everyone survives and a few passengers grumble about the shitty bus driver who can't follow simple warnings. Letters writes it off as a lapse in concentration. After all, this driver did the business the week before.

Day #2 of the new week dawns. Letters hops on the bus, same driver (a bit patched up but still with a cheery disposition), off we go.

The fucker ignores the signs and drives the bus into the hole. WTF? Everyone survives and more of the passengers have a grumble - what is WRONG with this arsehole? Just follow the bloody sign! A few decide they will walk.

Day #3, on the bus, ignore the sign, bang. In the fucking hole.

Day #4, in the hole, Day #5 in the hole. By day #6 Letters finds he's the only passenger remaining. The driver is in casts and bandages, hardly recognisable but still smiling and chatting as if nothing has happened. But still, bang, in the fucking hole.

Letters asks the driver, what's up with that fucking hole? The driver replies, I am the bus driver - how many buses have you driven? He also notifies Letters the fares are being doubled from tomorrow.

Day #7 dawns.

Now then, what does Letters do?

Does he:

A: Get on the bus and wait until the end of the journey to judge things?
B: Ring the bus company and ask for a better driver?

Yes of course, he gets on the bus. Can anyone predict what happens next?

NQ has a talent for this. Hilarious.

[rodders]

Lack of confidence in Wenger and his methods and philosophy is in my view why so many players have wanted to leave . Alexis Sanchez and Ozil will be next.They see we are going nowhere with Arsene at the helm.

[Özim]

Enjoy the scone but reconsider who is doing the patronising. If you don't appreciate that one then maybe this will help you understand plus it has the bonus of being genuinely patronising.

Letters needs to get from his house (point A) to his job (point B) every morning. It's a long drawn out journey so he takes the bus.

On day #1 the bus turns up, the drivers smiles and he conveys Letters from A to B in double quick time.
Same thing happens on day #2
Same thing happens on day #3 and for the whole week the journey keeps getting faster and faster. Excellent service. Well worth the money.

Next week comes along, Letters takes the bus as usual, driver smiles, puts his foot down and off we go. However, over the weekend roadworks have been set up, there's a hole in the middle of the road. So a small diversion is in place.

Problem is, the bus driver ignores the diversion and continues up the road past all the warning signs. Straight into the hole. Everyone survives and a few passengers grumble about the shitty bus driver who can't follow simple warnings. Letters writes it off as a lapse in concentration. After all, this driver did the business the week before.

Day #2 of the new week dawns. Letters hops on the bus, same driver (a bit patched up but still with a cheery disposition), off we go.

The fucker ignores the signs and drives the bus into the hole. WTF? Everyone survives and more of the passengers have a grumble - what is WRONG with this arsehole? Just follow the bloody sign! A few decide they will walk.

Day #3, on the bus, ignore the sign, bang. In the fucking hole.

Day #4, in the hole, Day #5 in the hole. By day #6 Letters finds he's the only passenger remaining. The driver is in casts and bandages, hardly recognisable but still smiling and chatting as if nothing has happened. But still, bang, in the fucking hole.

Letters asks the driver, what's up with that fucking hole? The driver replies, I am the bus driver - how many buses have you driven? He also notifies Letters the fares are being doubled from tomorrow.

Day #7 dawns.

Now then, what does Letters do?

Does he:

A: Get on the bus and wait until the end of the journey to judge things?
B: Ring the bus company and ask for a better driver?

Yes of course, he gets on the bus. Can anyone predict what happens next?

Brilliant