Arsene Wenger, who managed Arsenal for 23 years, once said, “You cannot say that you are happy when you don’t win,” when his team on a winning streak in the Premier League. For most part of Arsene Wenger’s stay at the Arsenal, when Arsenal was playing at the prime level and there is no getting back for the players now after Arsene Wenger exit.
The club has been longly associated with the manager and with Mikel Arteta taking over as the new manager of the club, the players will get a taste of Arsene Wenger and Pep Guardiola as Arteta was one of the most important players under Wenger’s reign and the assistant manager under Guardiola at Manchester City. The former Arsenal midfielder is going through a rough patch with the club’s abortive run in the Premier League overshadowing his tactics.
It is the manager who decides the club’s tactics and performance on the club by targeting the opposition through the playing XI. Arsene Wenger in his early days at Arsenal was almost invincible as he announced his arrival to The Gunners with a big show and a winning streak. From signing legendary players like Cesc Fabregas, Thierry Henry, and Patrick Viera, to finishing at the top of the premier league without losing a single match in the 2003-2004 season, Wenger managed the ‘Invincibles’ Arsenal for more than 2 decades.
Arsene Wenger’s Tactics and Records
Arsene Wenger was one manager who didn’t see the managerial ship as an accolade to be worn on the field; he treated his job like that of an artist who had to build a team that symbolized perfection. He worked on the club like a maniac to take it where it belonged and all thanks to his 4-4-2 formation, the Premier League discovered the strength of back four. It took the manager 6 years to create a wall that wasn’t penetrable and back four seemed like a lazy term to him because the manager had a strong ‘back 6’.
He had signed the Spanish teen sensation, Cesc Fabregas’ and soon-to-be legend Thierry Henry to strike an attacking play for the team. It took him time and precision to discover the perfect adjustment to the 4-4-2 play, as he built a strong wing attack while placing the midfielders according to the capabilities of the strikers. The ‘2003-2004’ season where Arsenal lifted the league without losing a single match was the last time Arsenal lifted a league and is fighting for a comeback ever since.
The club was ready with the raw material, aka, the players, but it was Arsene’s task to prepare them for the challenges and his buildup plans did the task for the team. After playing the first half in 4-4-2, he would shift Bergkamp to the Centre Forward positions and allow the Wingers to race forward, which would create direct contact between Thierry Henry and Patrick Vierra. The duo of Henry and Vierra was the lethal weapon and club missed that after Vierra’s departure.
The strength of Arsenal didn’t lie in a player or a position, but it was the whole team that worked towards the goal of achieving something and I suspect this has been lacking in the club ever since the departure of club legends.
Arsene Wenger’s influence on Arsenal
Yes, Arsene Wenger has been influential in the club’s run. At one point, Arsenal was way behind Chelsea and wasn’t recognized as a top-tier club from London. All this changed after Arsene Wenger helped them win ‘the Invincibles’ title.
The French Manager won the Manager of the Month Award 15 times in his run with the Gunners, has lifted the Premier League thrice and has even won the Manager of the Season Award thrice at Arsenal. I believe all these stats and honours make him the leading runner for being the Arsenal’s Best Manager of all time.
The Gunners Have Gone Stale After Arsene Wenger Exit
It has been around 2 years since the Gunners saw their legendary manager depart from the club and the Arsenal fans are having a difficult time getting used to the current status of the team. The Club has the perfect combination in the attack but lacks the quality in the midfield and defence while their over-dependency on Mesut Ozil and Aubameyang disallows the other players to step-up.
Under Arsene Wenger, Arsenal had a perfect combo at the back but the player inconsistency is shattering the club’s reputation.
Wolverhampton Wanderers and Sheffield United were amongst the clubs that were always listed amongst the bottom ten, and now they are listed above the Gunners in the Premier League table. I have been following the Premier League for over a decade now, and this year it seems like the players don’t care about the Gunners position and the desire to play in the Champions League seems to be long lost.
It is hard to imagine Arsenal without Wenger, but I don’t think they are Arsenal anymore because the Gunners we knew was the club that didn’t take their lost games easily.
‘Arsenal After Arsene Wenger Exit Is Not Arsenal Anymore’
In a recent statement, Amaury Bischoff, who spent the 2008-09 season in North London with Arsenal, said, “Every week I watch Arsenal and see how they do. The club is not like it used to be 10 years ago. For me, Arsenal without Arsene Wenger is not Arsenal.” Even when Wenger was there, the club’s reputation was declining, but he was experienced enough to get his team out of the pit. Unlike him, Emery and Arteta have failed to bring back the old club.
It was hard to imagine Arsenal without the legendary manager and when he is gone, things seem to go with the club the way everyone expected. Arsenal was not ready to be left without Wenger and with him gone, the club is under a crisis. I hope that the club strikes back and Arteta plays out for the Gunners, but everyone misses the old strategies of Arsene Wenger.
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