In Arsene I Trust

Something about my favourite manager Arsene Wenger of Arsenal Football Club.

Some may call him stingy, stubborn and in denial. Many hold him responsible for the decline of the club. Others want him to step down.

I have been a follower of Arsenal since Wenger started with the club. I saw how he transformed Arsenal Football Club, from good to great.

He has total control of many aspects of the club, because the board trusts him. Rightfully so.

Even as people call for his head, in the wake of the 8-2 thrashing by Man United, there are tons of reasons why the club needs him more than he needs the club. Fans should be grateful that he did not leave us for Madrid, the German and Japan national team, a few seasons back.

Below are contributions by him which I felt was vital to the progress of the club.

1) Being an economist, he championed the move for the Ashburton Grove project. The old Highbury could only accomodate about 38,000 fans, while the current stadium holds 60,000. Although it got the club into debt, it made sense that we were losing revenue by staying at Highbury. Anyway most of the debt had been repaid through planned repayments.

2) He brought in new training and nutrition techniques which helped aging players, like Tony Adams, improve and extend their playing careers. With the blend of English and foreign players, he got the best out of the team and secure silverware for subsequent seasons. Arsenal also qualified for Champions League every season for the past decade.

3) Achieving 'Invincibles', 49 games unbeaten, was no mean feat.

4) Using his economics knowledge, acumen for talent spotting and his faith in youth, Wenger brought a string of players who were mediocre and transformed them into legends. Nicholas Anelka was bought from PSG for $500,000 and sold for $23 million, Cesc earned us even more money. Dennis Bergkamp, Kanu, Vieira, Henry and Anelka, were having trouble fulfilling their potential at previous clubs. Wenger placed his faith in them and they all left as legends.

There are of course many more reasons but these few are proof that he is a great manager for Arsenal.

A few years ago, I was hooked to the football management game, Championship Manager.

While playing it, I realised that my transfer policy and principles in managing were very similar to Wenger.

I love bargain hunting, and look for players who were inexpensive, young and had great potential. Like Wenger, I do not keep players over 30 years old, as they had diminishing returns.

If I could, I would nurture young players and sell them when they became sought after, bagging a huge profit.

I would never field players who are not 100% fit, unless I was left without a choice.

I also didn't like to buy from the Premiership, because valuation of players were inflated.
My highest paid player earned about 90K-a-week (4 years ago).

Of course, my experiences in a fantasy game could not compare to Wenger's experience in the real game. However, I do understand his thought process, and his decisions that he made.

It is unfortunate that his players do not reward his faith with their loyalty. The high turnover in the squad meant that there was little opportunity for continuity. The manager's plan had to be revised constantly, due to the departures of core players. However, I believe that someone would always step up.

If he does go one day, it would be Arsenal's loss. I would probably follow him closely, in his next career choice.

True Arsenal fans would not give up hope on Wenger and his choices; they should understand him better than fair-weather fans.

To all Arsenal fans, stick to this motto: In Arsene We Trust

Let's look forward to an exciting season ahead!