Arsenal find themselves dumped out of two competitions in less than a week and suddenly the Gunners’ chances of silverware are decreased significantly and now every league game is a cup final, almost (and we know how well Arsenal do in cup finals!). Now, don’t get me wrong, the title race is far from over but do Arsenal have what it takes or is there something of a ‘mental block’ when it comes to obtaining a trophy?
Arsene Wenger may not be highly regarded as one of arsenal’s problems and rightly so but the manager must take responsibility for his teams failures at some point. When players are under-performing and being accused of lacking in effort it’s easy to blame individual players but one must question how much of this attitude is down to the managers style and motivational tactics. For example, it’s difficult to imagine a player under the likes of Ferguson or Moyes playing a full game in a lacklustre fashion without it being pointed out to him, to put it mildly.
Arsene Wenger has seen a number of players come and go over the past 5 trophy-less seasons yet, all the squads seem to have the same problem. Wenger has said before that if his team are losing or have been defeated he never uses the hairdryer method; instead they are made to sit and contemplate their mistakes. This is, no doubt, a tactful and subtle approach yet, it does seem slightly childish to me, like the naughty step or silent treatment method employed by parents.
Perhaps Arsenal would benefit from a more mouthy and brash assistant coach, someone to tell them when they’re flailing around arse over tit. Someone to provide some steel and some of the ‘English grit and determination’ that we’re so often reminded of. Could Wenger’s method be too intellectual for a football team?
No comments:
Post a Comment