It’s been eight long years since the North London giants Arsenal last picked up any kind of silverware. That last trophy was a penalty shoot-out victory over arch rivals Manchester United at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. That victory came on the back of a record breaking Premier League title in the 2003-04 season in which they never lost a league game.
So did ‘The Invincibles’ suddenly lose their way?
The season after that FA Cup win they reached the Champions League final for the first time but unluckily lost to a emerging Barcelona side. However, for reasons the FA Cup winning side started to break up quite quickly.
Of that side, four key figures moved on in a relative short space of time leaving Arsene Wenger with a dearth of world class players and more importantly renowned winners.
Patrick Vieira, the midfield enforcer and club captain had moved to Juventus in Serie A at the end of the 2004-05 season. His last game being that Cup Final victory with Vieira scoring the winning penalty. He had taken over from Tony Adams as club captain when Adams retired in 2002 and Vieira quickly became a pivotal figure in their push for supremacy.
Dennis Bergkamp, a key figure in Arsenal’s early success under Wenger, retired after that Barcelona game where he was an unused substitute. Bergkamp had been the perfect number 10 for Arsenal and provided that link between the midfield and Thierry Henry up front. His sublime skills would be severely missed.
Key figures kept moving
Ashley Cole was the next to get itchy feet and he controversially moved across London to rivals Chelsea to join Roman Abramovich’s revolution at Stamford Bridge. A fee of around £5m plus William Gallas was widely reported but it was the huge increase in Cole’s wages that stuck in the throat of The Gunners fans, accusing their former hero of moving for the money.
Arsenal’s all-time top scorer Thierry Henry was the next too say adios and the appeal of the beautiful Catalan city of Barcelona proved too much of a pull. The Spaniards paid £16m for the Frenchman, who eventually played his part in Barca’s treble winning side of 2009. The goals from Henry were missed in a terrible way and it could be argued that a replacement still hasn’t been found today despite Olivier Giroud’s recent form.
Off the pitch
Away from the playing side a power struggle continued to cast a shadow over Arsenal. David Dein, the then vice-chairman departed under a cloud when he sold his shares to Red & White Securities, lead by Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov.
Stan Kroenke, the American business entrepreneur, remains Arsenal’s largest shareholder but Usmanov’s move led to speculation of a bidding war between the two parties. Dein was replaced by Ivan Gazidis as an uneasy truce was agreed by the ‘warring’ factions.
New home, no silverware
Added to the key players moving out, Arsenal had to handle the financial problem of moving grounds from the iconic Highbury across to The Emirates sponsored stadium at Ashburton Grove.
It was a time just before a world financial collapse and tough times were ahead for the man in the street as job opportunities plunged and companies started to downsize. Arsenal had to balance success on the pitch with a move to a superb new sparkling new home.
It was a balance they have got wrong in terms of trophies in the cabinet but successful in qualifying for the Champions League season after season with third and fourth place finishes and successful in terms of their bank balance. Could it be that the new ground is cursed in some way or another. Maybe a Spurs fan buried an ‘unlucky’ charm within the foundations of the new stadium. Whatever the conspiracy theories going about, it was plain to see that this routine couldn’t continue.
Further Arsenal stars like Cesc Fabregas departed in the forthcoming seasons to help The Gunners balance the books. Wenger and the new board left themselves open to heavy criticism from the fans as they overseen a steady decline on the pitch that the French manager has successfully weathered, despite the sky high prices to watch them on a regular basis.
Good times ahead?
Now the Arsenal head the Premier League currently by four points from the chasing pack, headed by a rejuvenated Liverpool and fellow capital giants Chelsea. Could the glory days be just around the corner for Wenger and Co?
For a start Wenger has finally started to open the purse strings. His club record signing of Mesut Ozil for £42.4m saw jaws drop across Europe. The Real Madrid stars left behind openly questioned the sale such was the high regard they held for Ozil. The German set the Premier League alight with his early performances and a recent dip was to be expected with the speed and intensity of the English league.
Previously, Wenger had ‘dipped’ his toe into the transfer market by signing the likes of Santi Cazorla, Mikel Arteta, Lukas Podolski and the then French goal scoring machine Giroud from champions Montpellier. A backbone of a side was being built, slowly but surely.
Wenger was hoping these established stars would provide a good mix with the emerging talents of the likes of Jack Wilshere, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Aaron Ramsey and England international Theo Walcott. All four players are highly rated, internationals in their own right, with Ramsey the biggest surprise coming through this season with tremendous performances coupled with important goals.
The next steps
The coming transfer window, followed by the summer one will be the two most important windows in recent Arsenal history. Wenger needs to pluck at least two more players, with at least one being a top class striker. That might not come during the transfer window with the big names already heavily into their European campaign but it’s a must in the summer.
Progress is likely in Europe, though not guaranteed at this stage. You’d also put a lot of money on Wenger securing another Champions League finish but they may fall short in their chase for the league but again not guaranteed. My feeling is that they may just be a little short for this season and if they can maintain their development, they may go closer next season.
Wenger doesn’t (and won’t) just spend for spending sake. Quality is now what is required to bring a first trophy to The Emirates. A need for a couple of players who will go straight into the first eleven. This would also bulk out the squad for the tough tests to come. Maybe they were right to Trust in Wenger but only time will tell.