Reality Check – 3 years time

Ok so Arsene Wenger has signed a three year contract. This article is not about the positives of this, we already know them; we keep the most successful manager of our team, the man who has transformed us from “Boring Boring Arsenal” into the best footballing side in England and the man who has unearthed such Arsenal legends as Patrick Vieira and Thierry Henry. However I have decided to look 3 years into the future. Wenger will be 60 by the time his new contract will be near its end and the usual questions will come up: will he go or will he stay. There are many different possibilities for Arsenal FC in the coming years. There is no doubt the papers will show headline that read somewhere along the lines of “Wenger to Real Madrid? But Barca want him too” and Arsenal fans may well be worried. However as Le Prof said today, “My heart is tied to this football club” and we can be pretty sure Wenger will see out his new contract extension, he is a man of his word. Therefore it would be wise to ignore these reports, just be ready for them!

The next option is that Wenger signs on for another period of time. This is dependant on a few things. He said today that now we need to win trophies. If Arsenal push on and fulfill their potential and end up winning trophies I feel Wenger will call it a day; he will have built a winning side on a shoestring budget and that is where our ‘project’ is nearly at right now. Should 2011 come along and Arsenal still hasn’t won anything major I feel Wenger will want to stay on to prove his footballing teaching is successful. Wenger will only be 60 and as Alex Ferguson proved managers can carry on further than this at the right club and as Wenger said, “I love the Club. I love the job I have at Arsenal Football Club.” Arsenal is Wenger’s club, he IS the club whether people like it or not. He has made the team the way it is, transformed our club and taken English football a step further. Without him it is fair to say Arsenal would not be where it is today.

The third option is the one I want to concentrate on and it may be the one that needs the most thought and the one that may worry some Arsenal fans. If Wenger had left now it would have been premature, but in 3 years his era might be up. Wenger might decide he has done all he can in Football whether it is the case or not. Then what does Arsenal FC do? Well the key is to keep certain players at the club first and foremost. Cesc Fabregas’s the focal point of our team and in 3 years that will not have changed. He will still have 4 years on his contract and Im sure the vultures will have been circling for the years before. Cesc has always said his future is linked to Arsene. Therefore if Arsene leaves, it is possible Fabregas will make the move back to La Liga all Arsenal fans are dreading. This will be a massive blow to Arsenal as he is already becoming the complete midfielder. Others may well have the same dilemma as to whether to stay or go but again this isn’t the only worry. The main thing is who is to replace the longest serving and best manager Arsenal FC has ever had.

Hopefully Wenger will have a say in who comes in if he is to move on. This will help the board find the man who he feels can step into what would be the Football world’s largest shoes. The reason I say this is key is that Wenger will make sure the new manager can come in and ensure the standards of football remains the same. It may well be someone within the club, the reserves play football just aswell under Steve Bould, is he Wenger’s apprentice? While everyone was looking at Tony Adams, was his underrated partner in crime Steve Bould the one Wenger saw as the man most likely to become a future coach of Arsenal. He seems to have taken to the role of manager of the youth team very well and seems to have the respect of the players. The amount of potential candidates there are out there I am not one to speculate. The main problem is whether anyone can replace Wegner. His way of teaching football is different from any others. Everything is done down to a fine art and there is a slight possibility he is irreplaceable. This word is used lightly in football these days but the one time it may seem appropriate is with Arsene Wenger.

The board must do their best to get in the next best thing. Whoever the board members are it is likely Arsenal will be an even bigger team in the future, whether it is due to investment or due to natural revenue of the stadium. This should enable us to bring in a top manager, whoever it may be at the time. They will have money to spend and there’s no doubt they will have no chance of pulling off such amazing deals as our current boss did. We just have to make sure we get the right man in who can pick the right players as it is unlikely anyone can have such shrewdness in the transfer market.

The main point of this is for all Gooners to maybe look ahead and see what they think might happen in later years. Once Wenger leaves – yes it must happen sometime – how will our club change? Can the football remain at the same level and can we be as successful. The answer is yes but it does depends what happens in the 2010/11 season with Wenger and if he has a say on his replacement – if we need one!

However just to remind us – we have 3 more years of the master himself – Arsene Wenger – there is only one.