The Professor- 18 years and counting

From Sir Alex Ferguson to Jose Mourinho, the premier league has seen quite a few top class managers in the last 20 years. But, if there is one manager who changed the way the game is understood and played, it has to be Arsene Wenger. Be it transforming a misfiring winger to one of the most feared strikers of the world, or creating the “Invincibles”, the professor has done it all. They say that in today’s game, every manager comes with a shelf life. But Wenger has built all conquering sides, seen the stars leave, and rebuilt teams all over again. And all this while, Arsenal have never finished outside the top 4. And by any chance if you think that finishing in the top 4 is an easy task, you need to have a conversation with a guy named Mr David Moyes. The evolution of Wenger’s teams can be illustrated by the fact that during the “invincible” era, Wenger was accused by the British press of not having enough English players. Today, with players like Wilshere, Walcott, Welbeck and the Ox, the Arsenal team forms the core of the England national team.

Wenger is not your typical manager. He is an innovator.  But at the same time, he is very stubborn as well. He is never going to change his philosophy. And at times, the fans get frustrated because of this. But, considering where Arsenal were pre Wenger, and where they are now, they do not have any legitimate right to complain. Big money transfers and panic buys have always been a no-no for him( Yes, he did make a few panic buys like Andre Santos after a 8-2 drubbing against the likes of Young, Andersen and Cleverly, but we will ignore that one off thing). Most of his best transfers involved perfect scouting with Thierry Henry and Patrick Viera being the best examples. And yes, he also knew when to sell players. Henry was never the same player once he left Arsenal.  In the last one year or so, he did make statement signings in Ozil and Sanchez, but even those were well thought out transfers.

Wenger completes 18 years as Arsenal Manager this week

Apart from the accolades on the ground, Wenger has also overseen the building of a new stadium. The construction of the 60,000 seater Emirates restricted Wenger’s spending on wages and in the transfer market. But, being the economics professor that he is, he perfectly oversaw the club’s finances during this period. Today, Arsenal are one of the very few profit making and financially sound football clubs in Europe.

But of late, Wenger has had his problems. Surely he is a revolutionary who has changed the English game for good. “The problem with revolutionary people is that they are revolutionary only once in their life, so 20 years on they become average. And then they become prehistoric”, said one of his critics Raymond Verheijen, the dutch physio. Wenger’s training methods have been criticised for the ever increasing list of Arsenal injuries in the recent past. On the field, his reluctance to buy a strong defensive midfielder and a commanding centre half has been attributed to Arsenal’s meek displays against Europe’s best away from home. Yes, last year he ended the trophy drought by claiming the FA cup. But, Arsenal definitely deserves more. And if Wenger manages to win one more league title before calling it a day, it will be the perfect send off for him. And on a day when he completes 18 years and looking good for a few more years at the helm, one would certainly not put that beyond him. Keep thrilling us, Le Professeur.