Wenger, who has one year remaining on his contract often leaves it late when renewing, but wants to show his faith in his team and his belief in the project he has been building at the Emirates for the last several years.

“I have to show how much I believe in this team by showing my commitment, my situation will be sorted out very soon.”

“I believe my commitment to the club has nothing do with the speculation of how the season would go, because that would be unfair.
If I do not do well, and one day the club is not happy with me I can completely understand that I do not stay here any more. But I believe we will do well.”

“What will be success is to improve from last year, which is to win the league – that is the only benchmark – You cannot finish third and then say for the season after, you want to finish behind that. We are a young side and the improvement is natural – the ambition is there, we are hungry for success.”

“We know people want more from us and we are ready to give more, but success is to win the league.”

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Arsene Wenger set to extend Arsenal contract

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Arsene Wenger set to extend Arsenal contract

The Arsenal boss was speaking in the wake of the Gunners’ Champions League defeat to Porto in midweek when Wenger, among others, pointed the finger at some dubious refereeing from Martin Hansson.

Lukasz Fabianski picked up what was deemed a back-pass from Sol Campbell.

When Hansson – the Swede who missed Thierry Henry’s infamous handball in France’s World Cup play-off against the Republic of Ireland – allowed the free-kick to be taken quickly Falcao swept the ball home for the winning goal.

Although Arsenal’s Champions League betting suggests they still have a good chance of progressing to the next round despite their 2-1 defeat in Portugal, Wenger was still furious at the official.

“I believe he is incompetent or dishonest, so I prefer to believe he is not competent,” Wenger said of Hansson.

“I have seen much worse than that in my life – my own players were bought by the opponent. And I didn’t become paranoid.

“I do not want to come out on the past.

“In my job, you always have reasons to become paranoid, so I do not want to go the way to think that people are not honest.”

Wenger refused to reveal which club he was managing when the bribery incident took place.

The Frenchman spent three years at Nancy before taking charge of fellow Ligue 1 outfit Monaco for seven years.

He then moved to Japan to manage Grampus Eight before taking over at the helm at Arsenal in 1996.

Meanwhile, Arsenal’s Premier League betting odds suggest they are still in with a chance of winning the title this season.

However, they remain six points behind Chelsea and have an inferior goal difference after both teams won at the weekend.

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger reveals player bribery

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger reveals player bribery

The Gunners drew with Aston Villa last night at Villa Park and wins against Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool will see Arsene Wenger’s men back on top and with it the 3-1 cup reverse long forgotten.

But while most fans have been mulling over their cup exit, the boss Arsene Wenger has already put the defeat to bed.

Wenger rested several of his big guns and his young outfit were beaten late on by a competitive Stoke side, but Wenger has insisted he was right to leave out his first-choice goalkeeper and back four and is certainly not dwelling on the FA Cup result at The Britannia.

Wenger said:

“I do what I feel is right and that’s it.

“I already forgot Stoke, I did not know we even played at Stoke because I am focused on tomorrow. That is the most important thing.”

“I didn’t want to go out of the FA Cup on purpose.

“With 12 minutes to go, it was 1-1. It was a very tight game and at Stoke, it is like that.

“We got caught on the counter-attack when we tried to win the game and that can happen.

“They scored a perfect second goal on the break and unfortunately that’s where we lost the game.

“It was very tight. We did fight very hard.”

Wegner will be hoping that a well-rested first time will boost Arsenal’s Premier League title chances.

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger quick to forget cup exit

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger quick to forget cup exit

The 26-year-old suffered ankle ligament damage and is now likely to remain sidelined until April at the earliest.

Wenger has now revealed that the Gunners will be seeking compensation from the Dutch Football Federation and he has called for a ban on all friendlies taking place during the domestic season.

Prior to Sunday’s win over Liverpool the Frenchman said: “I believe that the friendlies during the season should be banned”.

“Contrary to what people say I believe they are made to make money and for diplomatic purposes, for political purposes.”

Wenger’s anger over the Van Persie injury will have been further fuelled by a misdiagnosis from the national team doctors. Despite the seriousness of the damage, it was originally announced that the forward would be out for just a few weeks.

Wenger explained: “Initially, the Dutch FA said it was a small problem and Robin called me to see if he could go and see this Serbian wonder doctor and it was okay.

“It was only when he came back here that we realised there was much more damage. In Holland they have a fight between the national doctor and the guy that did the surgery on Robin.”

Arsenal will now be hoping to receive compensation for the incident and the Gunners boss added: “We are working on this with our lawyers and we are definitely going for it.

“I expect compensation for the damage it can make to the championship.”

Indeed, the injury is likely to have had some impact on Arsenal’s Premier League odds.

Van Persie’s striking replacement, Andrey Arshavin has continued to flourish in a more central role, scoring the winner against Liverpool. However, with more than half of the season to go, and ground still to be made up on leaders Chelsea, Wenger will be hoping that the damage he talks of does not prove to be critical.

Meanwhile, sporting pundits have already turned their eyes to the 2010 Cheltenham Festival as they weigh up the prospects of the likely runners at the event.

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger hits out at international friendlies

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger hits out at international friendlies

On Tuesday the Emirates once again proved it’s worth in that respect, by hosting the FIFA backed 1Goal campaign.

1Goal aims to provide education for every child in the world and the event attracted around 250 guests, including Prime Minister Gordon Brown and a host of former footballers such as Alan Shearer and Marcel Desailly.

Arsene Wenger and Chief Executive Ivan Gazidis were present to greet the guests and show them around the Emirates pitch and stadium facilities.

After the event, Gazidis said:

“We are absolutely delighted that Emirates Stadium was chosen to host this important worldwide event, with so many VIPs in attendance.”

“Emirates Stadium has quickly established itself as a leading event venue not only in London but throughout the UK and Europe. We are proud that we have built a successful and reputable events offer which rivals any other established events venue.

“Since Arsenal Football Club moved to Emirates Stadium in July 2006, as well as nearly 100 Arsenal football matches taking place here, we have hosted two major music concerts, an Anglo-French governmental summit, X Factor auditions, many weddings, as well as hundreds of corporate conferences and private events.”

The key to the Emirates success is an all encompassing design that includes two hospitality suites, as well as the facilities to stage anything from a concert to a live satellite link-up. The latter was incorporated into the FIFA 1Game event and allowed guests to view messages of support from world leaders.

Despite only opening three years ago, the stadium has already won a host of awards and has undoubtedly played a major part in Arsenal’s recent pre-tax profit of £45.5million. With a weapon like this in the club’s financial armoury, Gazidis and the Gunners board have every right to be positive.

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Emirates proves its versatility once again

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Emirates proves its versatility once again

Arsene Wenger

Upon being appointed Gunners boss back in 1996, the London Evening Standard famously ran the headline “Arsene Who?”. Fast forward thirteen years and you’d be hard pressed to find a Londoner who has not heard of Arsene Wenger.

The Frenchman has been a revelation in his time at the club, transforming their style of play from one which drew chants of “boring boring Arsenal”, to a flowing, attacking style admired the world over.

He has also enjoyed huge success in terms of silverware, collecting eleven trophies during his tenure, including three Premier League titles and four FA Cups.

At the time of Wenger’s appointment, foreign managers in England were a rarity and many – including Arsene himself – believed the move to be a gamble.

Speaking to the official club website, he said:

“When you work abroad it is never easy because, frankly, they do not need you.

“It is difficult to put into context today because now every foreign manager arrives on a red carpet. It was not like that when I arrived.

“When I think retrospectively, it was a gamble by the Board and that is the biggest surprise to me,

“At that time, to do what Arsenal did, you needed to be a little bit crazy. Crazy in the sense that I had no name, I was foreign, there was no history. They needed to be, maybe not crazy, but certainly brave.”

Thankfully for Wenger and the Arsenal board, the gamble has paid off in fine style, with the boss keen to thank all those who have stood behind him throughout the thirteen years.

He said:

“I believe I was lucky to find the support I found at Arsenal and that is always important for success.”

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger breaks another Arsenal record

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger breaks another Arsenal record

The recent decision by Fifa to ban Chelsea from the next two transfer windows has sparked a number of allegations against Premier League football clubs for ‘poaching’ young footballers. It has been suggested that a total ban on the transfer of under 18′s will solve the problem but Wenger thinks that this could lead to some players failing to fulfil their potential.

In a recent press conference, the Arsenal boss highlighted Lionel Messi as an example of a player that has benefited from the current system.

Wenger said:

“Messi is a good counter-example of what Fifa is fighting against,

“They [Barcelona] took Messi from Argentina at the age of 12, paid for his medical treatment and brought his entire family over. You can ask whether that is right or wrong, but Messi today is the best player in the world.

“In Barcelona he got a good education and was looked after medically. Should you forbid that? Maybe Messi would still have got a good education in Argentina, but not all the boys will.”

Arsenal are widely renowned for the quality of their youth system and current captain Cesc Fabregas is just one of their players to have made a big impact after completing a transfer at a young age. Fabregas joined from Barcelona aged 16 in 2003 and is now a key player for club and country. Wenger believes that the move has helped to speed up his development.

“As for Fabregas, he has not wasted his time here but he could have also played in the under-17′s at Barcelona.” said the Frenchman.

“We took advantage of a period at Barcelona that was messy.”

Unfortunately for Wenger, not every club plays by the rules and it seems likely that Fifa will have to introduce a ban in an attempt to keep the peace. A number of Premier League clubs currently have complaints against their name and while Arsenal’s reputation remains untarnished, the days of the child transfers appear to be numbered.

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger not convinced by transfer ban

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Wenger not convinced by transfer ban

However, one club has decided not to follow this trend and while the fellow members of the ‘big four’ have all been taken over in recent years, Arsenal have so far resisted any approach. In addition they have also built a new stadium and remained a threat on the domestic and European stage. This has been achieved in large, due to their manager’s shrewd transfer policy and faith in youth.

“A team which averages 28 or 29 years old can maybe improve by 5% but a team averaging 22 years old can improve by 30%” Arsene Wenger told BBC Sport.

He added that Arsenal would only buy if: “we find better players than the ones we have already”.

It seems a simple philosophy but one that nobody else in modern football seems to share. Though it may be tempting to splash the cash when it becomes available, there is often a better solution. Manchester City are a prime example, having forked out over £100million on strikers in the last 12 months. There is little doubt the City now have a better range of options but unless Mark Hughes is planning to play six up front, the chances of discontent, resulting in poor team morale are high.

There is little doubt that Arsenal have endured a difficult 12 months but with a number of big players returning from injury Wenger is feeling confident.

“I envisage only one order,” the 59 year old said.

“That is Arsenal finishing on top and all the rest can do what they want.”

With a net spend since 2004 of minus £25million, any such success would cement Wenger’s status as one of English football’s greatest ever managers. It may even make other clubs think twice about their financial dealings. Well, it’s unlikely, but you can but hope.

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Financial foundations to pave way for more Wenger success

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Financial foundations to pave way for more Wenger success

A salute to pointlessness

I happen to be two things.
1. An Arsenal fan (obviously)
2. A massive geek.

So when this story popped up in my inbox I immediately had the thought “This one is just too bizarre/perfect for me not to post about.”

The second thought, of course was a big, bold, WHY?

Football stadiums these days are already full of TV screens, if fans wanted to look at all that stuff, surely they would be at home watching the game on the TV/an illicit on-line stream?

Is this Arsenal’s idea of a way to improve atmosphere at games, by having 60,000 people hunched over their PSPs instead of, well, you know – watching the game?!

Eric Siereveld of Sony said:

“This device will brings an extra dimension to the game with information and statistics, But we think that the next generation of the software that runs it could actually link fans during the game with each other.”

What, like when they already shout and chant together?

And, erm… how will it add an extra dimension when you’re going from real-life 3D to a 2D screen?

Yeah, I had to go ahead and make 2 of these pictures anyway.

Madness.

The only possibly useful application I can think of this technology is if they give one to the referee so he can take another look at that last suspect offside, foul or on-pitch knife attack.

I dunno, it might be worth getting a PSP for if you were unlucky enough to get a season ticket seated behind a really, really tall person with a very large, square head or something.

What do you think? Would you watch the game on a 480px x 272px screen or would you rather just look in front of you?

Is this idea a bit like a chocolate teapot? Isn’t a DS more fun anyway?

Am I asking too many loaded questions?

You know what to do. Let it all out in the comments.

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Emirates to get PSP powered replays

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Emirates to get PSP powered replays

Here’s the full draw:

Arsenal v Roma

Chelsea v Juventus

Villarreal v Panathinaikos

Sporting Lisbon v Bayern Munich

Atletico Madrid v FC Porto

Lyon v Barcelona

Real Madrid v Liverpool

Inter Milan v Manchester United

Arsenal Director Danny Fiszman spoke about the draw, saying:

“I think it is a good draw for us. We have stayed away from the favourite of the moment (Barcelona) and we have also stayed away from Panathinaikos, which meant a long trip.

We have a good record against Roma, we are pleased with the draw. I think it is the old cliche, there isn’t an easy game, but it is an exciting draw, exciting for the fans. Our fans will have the chance to go to Rome and hopefully we will do it twice.”

It’s not a bad draw for Arsenal, it could have been better and could have been worse!
Arsenal will play the first leg at home and travel to Rome for the second leg.

The matches will be played on 24/25 February and 10/11 March.

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Arsenal draw Roma in Champions League

This post is from: Arsenal Online

Arsenal draw Roma in Champions League