End Of Term Report; Arsenal
Their football was fluent, fluid and above all fun yet Arsenal completed a third successive season without any silverware. Arsene Wenger’s side received many of the plaudits on offer for the brand of football they played in 2007/08, but ultimately drew criticism for leaving the party empty handed. They led the title race by five points in late February, but imploded after a run of just one win from their next eight Premier League fixtures. Still, their final tally of 83 points left them just four points shy of Manchester United’s championship-winning mark showing just what could have been. And yet when one considers what the doomsayers were predicting before the season started Arsenal’s Premier League showing could be construed as over-achievement. The pre-season departure of Thierry Henry to Barcelona had most people predicting a troubled time for the Wenger Boys. They were all but written off as title contenders even then, only to thrive in the early part of the season. Many would argue that they prospered because rather than in spite of the loss of Henry, who many later reflected had become something of an obstacle to Wenger’s attempts to instil a real team ethic. Among Wenger’s many great strengths is his continued ability to replace big names. No sooner had Henry left the foyer at the Emirates Stadium than the Arsenal faithful were lauding a new striking hero in the shape of Emmanuel Adebayor. The Togo international netted 22 times in the Premier League, a tally bettered only by Cristiano Ronaldo and equalled only by Fernando Torres. With Cesc Fabregas continuing to banish the memory of Patrick Vieira with some masterful midfield displays, Wenger’s new breed of Young Gunners were threatening to sweep up all before them. The turning point arguably came on February 23 at Birmingham City. An early and horrific injury to another rising Arsenal star Eduardo left his team-mates visibly sickened and shocked, as Arsenal contrived to concede a late equaliser from the penalty spot after Gael Clichy’s rash challenge. The reaction of Gunners skipper William Gallas to the mistake and the result drew widespread condemnation, with the France defender choosing to respond by sitting alone in the other half of the field when he may have been better served following in the spot-kick in the hope of clearing any rebound off the goalkeeper. There was no rebound, but rather more damningly from that moment on there seemed to be no captain. Perhaps unwittingly Gallas had introduced a culture of blame among his team-mates, with a hopelessly over-hyped spat between Adebayor and Nicklas Bendtner nevertheless adding more fuel to the fire. Yet just as Gallas cannot realistically blame any of his team-mates for Arsenal’s woes, so their ultimate failures cannot be pinned entirely on the ex-Chelsea man. In addition to Eduardo’s injury Wenger lost the influential Tomas Rosicky for the latter part of the season. The Czech star has a knee injury which has kept him out of action since January, and which will keep him out of his country’s bid for glory at Euro 2008 this summer. Similarly Robin van Persie missed large chunks of the season with persistent injury troubles, depriving Arsenal of yet another creative force who could just have made the difference in turning all of those Spring-time draws into wins. Arsenal’s frustrations in the league were mirrored by their efforts in the cup competitions. They were humbled 4-0 by Manchester United in an FA Cup fifth round tie, and that following a 5-1 Carling Cup semi-final second leg pummelling by Tottenham Hotspur in January. That Spurs went on to defeat Chelsea at Wembley to win the trophy added further insult, though to be fair Wenger continued his policy of offering opportunities to youth and fringe players in the domestic cup competitions. The same cannot be said of the Champions League where the Frenchman’s dogged pursuit of a European title came to nought. Drawn against Champions League specialists Liverpool at the quarter-final stage an Arsenal side which had knocked out holders AC Milan in the previous round could only manage a 1-1 draw in the home leg against Rafa Bentiez’s side. They were then hit with the irresistible force that is a European night at Anfield, losing out 4-2 in an epic encounter which all but vanquished their hopes of picking up a trophy for another year. Of all the losses suffered by Wenger over the course of the season one gets the feeling that this was the one which hurt the most. Wenger’s biggest problem now is holding on to the men who have helped shape his next potentially great team. Midfielder Mathieu Flamini was nothing but an adequate squad man at the start of the campaign, but thanks to Wenger finished it as a much sought-after midfield enforcer. His subsequent move to AC Milan was a worrying reminder of Arsenal’s reluctance or inability to compete with Europe’s best financially and the press are suggesting that more key departures are imminent. Cesc Fabregas is routinely linked with a move back to Spain every summer, but talk of Alex Hleb joining Serie A champions Inter Milan might have more credence. Adebayor has also felt the need to issue a denial of any intention to leave the Emirates Stadium club, but there is an old saying about smoke and fire which could apply. If Wenger can keep the scavengers away from his players for a while longer he has built a squad which is very capable of ending the trophy mini-drought. Should he do so, he will do it with a footballing philosophy which will have even the most ardent anti-Arsenal man struggling to find fault with the style and panache on show in north London. By Stephen Orford 18 May 2008
