Wenger Admits: 'I'm Lost'
-
Manager Arsene Wenger has admitted he feels "a bit lost" as he bids to prevent Arsenal's poor form in cup competitions derailing their season. Wenger has endured one of the most difficult spells in his decade-long reign at the club, with the Gunners losing in three cup competitions in the space of a fortnight
Their poor run started with defeat in the Carling Cup final against Chelsea and continued as they were dumped out of the FA Cup by Blackburn and beaten by PSV Eindhoven in the last 16 of the Champions League.
Those results have been compounded by a host of injury problems - with captain Thierry Henry the biggest loss after being ruled out for the rest of the season - and the suspensions given to Emmanuel Adebayor, Emmanuel Eboue and Kolo Toure in the aftermath of the Carling Cup clash against Jose Mourinho's side.
Wenger said: "Recently we've hit the wall a little bit. "Not spectacularly but enough that we are not able to push on like on Wednesday night (against PSV). "On Wednesday we looked for something special but it didn't come because at the moment it is not in the team.
"It's the first time it has happened and I'm a little bit lost at the moment. "I'm always planning for the next game but at the moment it is a shock to the system as a club because it's the first time, but I am very busy planning for the Premier League."
The Frenchman is disappointed by the unavailability of key men as he bids to get his side back on track but has backed the Gunners, who face Aston Villa in the league on Wednesday, to hit form soon. "After such a disappointment it's difficult to pick yourself up again, but on the other hand I know how proud they are and how much they want to show that they have quality and finish as close as possible to Manchester United and Chelsea.
"We could have Mathieu Flamini and Justin Hoyte back (for the Villa match) and Tomas Rosicky will be a little bit short. "But we lose Gael Clichy, who is suspended and injured, and we lose Kolo, Adebayor and Eboue who are suspended again.
"We also miss Thierry, Robin van Persie...the list is so long I must take care not to forget anyone. "But it would be a disaster for us if this disappointment in the Champions League caused us to take our foot off the pedal. It is a big test of our mental strength to show we're on the up and nobody can stop us."
And Wenger believes his Arsenal, buoyed by the efforts of the squad's young players who starred in the Carling Cup run, will only go from strength to strength. "I think 95% of things are good in our team but at the top level it is the 5% that makes the difference," he told Arsenal TV Online.
"As hard as it is to take, I feel there's a lot of positives and although we have to correct (some aspects) we can keep the basis of a strong team. "This team is growing and becoming stronger and stronger." -
they should have sold henry earlier and cash in on him while they could.
afterall they are short on funds and have too many young players. -
No they shud keep henry. he's inspirational if he's on top form actually. they just need the midfielders and strikers to finish well.Originally posted by dragg:they should have sold henry earlier and cash in on him while they could.
afterall they are short on funds and have too many young players. -
I have to disagree with that because Arsenal lacks natural finisher.Originally posted by dragg:they should have sold henry earlier and cash in on him while they could.
afterall they are short on funds and have too many young players.
Before Henry, there was Anelka. Before Anelka, there was Bergkamp. Before Bergkamp, there was Ian Wright. etc. But after Henry? Who can replace him? Adebayor? Baptista?
I think it's time to let Walcott and Aliadiere to mature under Henry. Adebayor seems to be picking up a thing or two from Henry. Ade has been drifting wide and cutting in to take his shot, just like wad Henry would do. However, he is still learning from the class act.
Arsenal buys players at low price, some are even free, train them into World Class players. However, they do not cash in on that. Players either leave on free transfer or Bosman ruling because of Wenger's policy to offer onyl a year contract to players over 30.
Henry should stay becos he is influential and he is the man to pull the entire team out of the pit.
Cheers.
CK -
resign la
-
look like his youth policy is not paying off.
-
But had Henry left, they wouldn't have got a cent cos his contract was over so he could have walked away for free... Instead they offered him a better deal to stay. But who knows, now that he is contracted to them after re-signing a new deal... they may cash in on him still.Originally posted by dragg:they should have sold henry earlier and cash in on him while they could.
afterall they are short on funds and have too many young players.
But i feel the problem with arsenal is they lack experience players... They have a record for cashing in on players reaching 30... Players who can still contribute to the team. Leaving them with very few experience players who are vital when the going gets tough.
Good young players are great to watch but when it comes to the difficult period or pressure moments... They don't bring it.
Getting rid of Sol Cambell, Lauren and Pires was a mistake. Cambell and Lauren are still doing a great job for Portsmouth, the lost of Pires seem to have an effect on Henry too.
I am guessing that they are also planning to get rid of Lehmann and Ljungberg very soon. -
Having a youth policy is good, but there must be some veterans in the squad to provide experience to the young guns. At the end of the day, it is all about balance.
-
the reason they are cashing in on players reaching 30 cos the need the money since most of their funds were used to build the emirates.
but wenger should learn from big sam. furthermore players above 30 dont ask for bombastic wages, unless you are becks , and they also dont mind sitting on the bench and coming on as a sub most of the time.
these players can control the game and calm the nerves of the young players. especially in the last 10 mins of a game when the are leading by a single goal. -
-
Gallas: It's our fault we're out
WILLIAM GALLAS last night blasted his Arsenal team-mates as ‘stupid’ over their Champions League exit to PSV. The Gunners defender also accused the club of lacking a killer instinct in front of goal.
Gallas, 29, said: “Our exit was hard to stomach. I think about it a lot. "What made it even harder to swallow was I told my team-mates to be extra careful at set-pieces. “We conceded the goal as the result of a completely stupid and needless foul. “The ball was in the corner and all we needed to do was to wait. It was down to youthfulness.
“We lacked finishing skills. We created far more chances than PSV yet failed to convert a single one. “We had to rely on Alex helping us out by scoring an own goal.”
The Gunners only have third place in the Premiership left to play for this season. And Gallas groaned: “When you are a top-level footballer, victory is the only thing that counts. But there will be no trophy to lift.
“We will do all we can to finish third but that is not a target you dream about. “Everybody will motivate himself in his own way but it is not going to be easy.
“I hear people say all the time Arsenal produce beautiful football. “But I look at the statistics and see we don’t often score more than one goal a game. We don’t have enough of a killer instinct.” -
no balance in the squad. too much young..
-
Originally posted by zocoss:
the way he spoke as if he wants to leave arsenal asap. i hope he wont cos gallas if one damn good experienced defender
[b]Gallas: It's our fault we're out
WILLIAM GALLAS last night blasted his Arsenal team-mates as ‘stupid’ over their Champions League exit to PSV. The Gunners defender also accused the club of lacking a killer instinct in front of goal.
Gallas, 29, said: “Our exit was hard to stomach. I think about it a lot. "What made it even harder to swallow was I told my team-mates to be extra careful at set-pieces. “We conceded the goal as the result of a completely stupid and needless foul. “The ball was in the corner and all we needed to do was to wait. It was down to youthfulness.
“We lacked finishing skills. We created far more chances than PSV yet failed to convert a single one. “We had to rely on Alex helping us out by scoring an own goal.”
The Gunners only have third place in the Premiership left to play for this season. And Gallas groaned: “When you are a top-level footballer, victory is the only thing that counts. But there will be no trophy to lift.
“We will do all we can to finish third but that is not a target you dream about. “Everybody will motivate himself in his own way but it is not going to be easy.
“I hear people say all the time Arsenal produce beautiful football. “But I look at the statistics and see we don’t often score more than one goal a game. We don’t have enough of a killer instinct.”
[/b] -
ya lo...Originally posted by felirox:the way he spoke as if he wants to leave arsenal asap. i hope he wont cos gallas if one damn good experienced defender
but young players need time to nurture and gain experience 1 ma...
after 2 yrs liddat, dey all sure become very gd 1...
wenger has a talent for training young players. -
Arseanl will bounce back, not tis season, maybe in a season or 2 when its young players have matured. .
-
jz bcos they hv too many young players then they will need henry arnd to allow the young to learn from him... selling him wun help cos the new players who come in still need to adapt to the team and wun help the young much...Originally posted by dragg:they should have sold henry earlier and cash in on him while they could.
afterall they are short on funds and have too many young players. -
i feel sad for wenger
-
Don't need to feel sad for him cos he has a job there for life...Originally posted by allentyb:i feel sad for wenger
You should feel sad for jose instead...
-
Feel Sad for Jose? R U kidding? Many Clubs want him if he quits chelsea, not to mention ManU!
feel sad for Fergie instead!
-
???? Make no sense.Originally posted by superstrongnlong:Feel Sad for Jose? R U kidding? Many Clubs want him if he quits chelsea, not to mention ManU!
feel sad for Fergie instead! -
Wenger is a good manager, he'll get through this. He's more than capable enough. Ferguson faced a similar scenario with the resurgence of Chelsea 2 seasons back and the team is doing well now.
I don't feel Wenger's capabilities are below Ferguson and his squad is still young. I say Arsenal will bounce back. Maybe not this season but the next.
One thing to note is that he is quite reliant on Henry, so it's more likely next season than this. -
This season is a learning experience for them like i've said again and again.
Let them settle down, sort it out and start again.