McLintock – Wenger MUST sort out the defence or he could be sacked
The Arsenal legend Frank McLintock believes that Arsene Wenger has been given enough years to address the Gunners’ deficiency in defence, and this could be his last chance to plug the gaps or the Frenchman could be sacked for his obstinacy.
McLintock, who won the Double with Arsenal in 1971, said: “If he doesn’t start addressing the faults that have been there for three years, there’s a chance he might be sacked.”
“He’s never really been under extreme pressure before. The board have loved him – he’s made them a fortune. Most of the supporters love him, but I wonder what’s happened in the last two or three years.
“You don’t want to see him go. We want to be praising him. I think if Arsenal had two good centre-halves and another centre-forward in the last two years, we would have won the championship.
“Ever since he lost the great back five Wenger inherited from George Graham, they’ve never really addressed that position.
“Their centre-half position has been really poor and teams recognise it. But somehow Arsenal haven’t done anything about it.
“The Invincibles were a big, physical, strong side, with great technique. They had no weaknesses. When you look at this Arsenal side, they always look as if they could be bullied out of it.
“The team at Old Trafford were inexperienced all over the pitch and very lightweight – they looked like little boys.”
Maybe that was the difference on Sunday. Alex Ferguson also put out a very young side, but the difference is that Man Utd like to buy BIG little boys, whereas Wenger doesn’t mind if they are smaller and faster. They will always get bullied by bigger teams…..
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Yes!!!…. that is what I have always said…the little boys are too small, that is part of the problem, if AW would buy big strong young players things might be different
Top Gooner!. Agree or not?:
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Think AW has simply overstayed his welcome.he is living in past glory.don’t think he has the time to listen even to his assistant.the board loves him…,most of the fans worship him to the extent that …no Wenger no Arsenal! Ths has made him big headed.i think the players have lost confidence in this man.Arsenal is too big a club to keep a manager who has stagnated.all he thinks of is lining their pockets.can’t imagine that its less than 48hrs before the window shuts and we haven’t signed a proven CB.cry my beloved Arsenal!
Opinions divided. What do you think?
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So now you’re gonna tell us that barcelona’s boys are all big and strong. Size has never been the problem, the problem is that you can’t play a youngster team in big games, ManU still had rooney, young, evra, nani and anderson, and all of them have lots of expirience. The problem is that we don’t keep our best players, we’re only selling them for profit like small clubs. If we still had some of our legends we would have won something in the last years.
Top Gooner!. Agree or not?:
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now we have made an enquiry for yossi benayoun i feel its better that nothing also he must sell djorou and squllaci and sign 2 centre backs preferring samba and cahill becasue vermalen might get injured and i reckon 4 good center backs is whats needed also hazard and kaka and the were back amoung the elite btw bringing kaka in will make the players so much happier and confidence increase and yeh another defensive mid i would like felline from everton. (btw sorry for mis spelling of players names never good with that lol)
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And you thought the previous American Liverpool owners were jokes, think again! Stan Kroenke is the greediest sports team owner ever! A silent morron just interested by cash, he wouldn’t even have the decency to show up at games, I bet this jerk doesn’t even know what colors the AFC plays with! Gazidis is the most inept front-office guy in the EPL. If you look at the transfer dealings in other EPL teams, you see Gill in Manure, Cook in Man Shitty, Levy in Spuds, Gartsfield in Bolton being very active with transfer dealings. In Arsenal, AW has to do it all: coaching, board meeting, players diet, player salary, transfers, … no wonder the poor guy is burnt out after only 3 games into the EPL. In the meantime, Gazidis is in his office counting money from Fabregas, Nasri, Clichy, Eboue transfers, I mean the AFC board is a MASSIVE DISGRACE, it’s time for AFC fans to start some pressure on this board’s arse, really! May be Usmanov should get some chance to run the AFC! At least he shows some passion by attending our games, unlike the silent crook!
Top Gooner!. Agree or not?:
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We still need a strong CB to pair with VM… a left back, a creative midfielder and a strong huge Striker. Walcott should be played through the middle, he can’t cross.
Wenger need to ask his players to go on a heavy diet, make them strong… RVP, Chamack, Gervinho, none of them are really strong. They need to eat.
N also another assistant Manager… Please give Pat Rice all the honours he needs n ask him to retire.
Opinions divided. What do you think?
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Out of tune?. Like or Dislike:
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Wenger inherited the great back 5, THATS the problem, now its a fact he is not that fast in signing good defenders, if it takes you one year per good player, you ll end up losing them in 11 years.
Oh and the starting XI? Manure did NOT have their starting XI, hell Chicharito wasnt even starting!
Top Gooner!. Agree or not?:
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Andre santos signed and apparently florent malouda is close, what do you guys think?
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why all these so called arsenal legend want to see arsene sacked.
franck mclintock please stand up and take over we will see how long you gonna last.
they are the ones that live in the past, the invincible defence was not george graham’s. the fact that a frenchman came in to wipe out all of their records and he now stands as the best ever arsenal manager even bitter ian wright saw his record ripped to shred by king henri, oh another french. they all wish the worst for arsenal so arsene can be sacked.
sorry francky! the rebuilding process has already began. arsene of arsenal will be around for while.
Opinions divided. What do you think?
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Scott, how much does the club pay AKBs to write crap? If losing 8-2 to anyone, much less manure, us just fine with you, you may be a club employee, but don’t consider yourself a supporter, that would be an insult to Arsenal.
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Wenger should still be sacked even at this stage he signs some player… this will continue for him… he will never learn from his mistakes…. another transfer window will be same under his management… new youngster with hefty signing fee….
doesnt the youngster needs some idol to learn from…. if the youngster dont have the direction where to move they cant reach their full potencial….
Opinions divided. What do you think?
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just saw santos on you tube decent player but the skills he exhibits are awsome..av gat a feling wenger will actually b usin him as a winger..cos he said hes not buying a left back..what do u think?
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yet again i will say stupid England fans. You guys have so much money to worst. Buying season tickets to make wenger and his bosses richer yet all you get from the deal is pain. Please send some of that money to my country malawi it could help alot. Let me get back to the issue at hand, i have watched the EPL since 1989 and the truth is wenger has been running away from buying players because he has run out of coaching ideas. So he has used money, injuries, players and luck of expirience to buy him the 6yrs he has stayed at arsenal doing nothing. If you want to prove my theory dare him to buy world class players cause even with the Kakas’, Ribarys’, Sambas’ and the likes we can’t win anything. It is the coach and board that are not right at arsenal. Wenger’s tactics are so poor and predictable, his formations can’t even work on video games and his softness towards other players like then Fab, RVP and Walcot makes one wonder they could never be substituted even if they did nothing in the pitch. For me Wenger and his board must go.
Opinions divided. What do you think?
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Agreed, the back must be strengthened first in order for the forwards and mids to have a clear mind to attack. Santos is a great addition. Now bring in Cahill/vertongen/kjaer to relieve the pressure on Verm. Park is a GREAT addition. Hopefully he will mentor the young forwards and do for arsenal what he does for his country. Get Martin, one of the most promising mids in Europe with his clinical finishing and passing and also m’vila to partner with song and I will have high hopes of beating bitch ass man u down at the emarites come spring! Gunners to the derf
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What defence?
What Defenders?
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I won’t sign any player.We have a strong squad.
Top Gooner!. Agree or not?:
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Scott – 7or8 players out & the team disintegrates. This is called no depth. The current Man Shitty team wld not have our problem. So although you are correct, 7or 8 players out and things are explainable, they are not excusable. We have had MONTHS to sort this out. We knew Cesc & Nasri were on their way. Was knew we have defence issues. But waiting till thelastweek to start offering other clubs cash for their players is bad transfer dealing. It’s like building a house, and buying a roof for it because it starts raining. You should have planned better, bought what you need ahead of time. Not when it is too late. Man U also diet Ed art thing and bought what they needed at the start of the window. We have been caught with our pants around our ankles, and that’s not acceptable for us. We are better than that.
Genuinely don’t think it’s AW’s fault. I think he has been resricted. Things were different when Dein was around. Now AW is being screwed by Amercans and the current board. You can see the pressure on his face. Can’t think of any other manager that wld have kept this club going under such shitty circumstances.
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The fact is arsene has done wonders at this football club over the years….Arsenal is where it is because of arsene..
But Arsene wenger time is up…he shud be a youth development or football director of arsenal not the manager…
Everybody says we need CB..yes we definitely do but did u guys realize how naive the tactics were at old traford…holding such a high line and leaving so much of space between keeper and defenders….that is the mistake of arsene wenger…and when as a manager u gt ur tactics wrong over and over it’s time to go
And I see a lot of fans hurling abuses at arsene..well fuck them… arsenal is bcoz of arsene….show some damn respect….
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What does mean it: “big boys”?7 feet height?To remind:the best defenders in football history,the legends Beckenbauer and Baresi,were not “big boys”.
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McLintock’s comments don’t make sense…
He claims that…
“Ever since he lost the great back five Wenger inherited from George Graham, they’ve never really addressed that position. Their centre-half position has been really poor and teams recognise it. But somehow Arsenal haven’t done anything about it.”
But who were the “Invincible” defenders?
LAUREN, TOURE, CAMPBELL, COLE
i.e. NOT inherited from Graham. A defence built by Wenger.
There might have been problems since then but the “Invincibles” demonstrated – Wenger CAN build a defence.
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@Bob,of course i can build a defence that’s why i bought squilacci.
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Iam kind dissapointed with the reaction of some people i dont no if its just cause i australian and football isant born in me but i love it wake every morning to watch it but i follow a team in rugby league south sydney and they were the greatest team of all time but we arnt the best anymore but i will still surport them to the death and se people saying that they are not goin to surport arsenal anymore dont get me wrong i think there needs to b chanhe some where but i will never stop supporting them the people who leave are just like nasri no loyalty and thats why its goin a bit down hill but we will come back have faith forever in arsenal we all love
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I’ve been saying we need to strengthen the centre back position for years as have many others to be fair. I’m bored of saying it but still nothing is done. Wenger has so far been too stubborn or too tight to do anything about it and unless he swallows his pride in the next 48 hours and goes back for Cahill expect more shambolic defending this season. It’s irrational, its illogical and its totally self destructive but its the path he has chosen to take.
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Frank and George were as tactful as they could be – and also paid WENGER many compliments. Their criticisms were spot on and have been mentioned by loads of ex player TV pundits. If Arsene would have listened several years ago we would not be in this mess. He could have his choice of ex Arsenal players to drill the defence and drill the whole team into playing when the oppo has the ball … where we are very weak. But Arsene prefers YES MEN.
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Heard Wenger is eyeing Alex, he’d certainly give the whole team a boost with his experience. He doesnt mess around Wenger, please get him if you want our team to succeed!
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I really don’t believe Wenger is any judge of a defender nor of how a defensive unit should work together.
For example, he still seems to think Djourou is a good defender !! it’s a pity he didn’t let him continue in defensive midfield where he might have been successful.
Wenger inherited the old back 4/5 without which he would have won jack shit.
Then Dein bought Sol Campbell. Since then Wenger has signed Sagna, fair enough, and Koscielny is OK as back up. But think of the long list of joke defenders he has bought over the years.
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@Bob 8 or 7 players missing, can you really say that because we had 8 or 7 players missing it is ok to get battered 8-2 in a match that could have very well ended 12-2 take away 8-7 players from Mancity, Chealsea, Liverpool i am sure they would not have got destroyed like that. Also man united were also missing 5 players and played a very young side. Arsenal have had some problems in defence for years now and wenger has failed to address them, you only have to look at last seasons carling cup final to see that. And now after an 8-2 thrashing hes ready to buy.
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Dear Santa. i know its a little early, but i just want an early Christmas gift to keep my frens who happens 2 be Manure scums and Kops fool to just shut up…
These 2 idiots is getting on my nerves but i need something to keep them quiet. I was getting to Kops fools and told them they haven’t wont anything also for the last 6 years…Apparently he told me the Charity Shield counts. Sigh…What a loser.
A League Cup just wont make the season for us cause – We Are Arsenal!!!
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hime says:
August 29, 2011 at 7:52 pm
i m sick and tired of all this Arsenal and Wenger shit. Look For me if Arsene doesnt buy a DEFENDER or even DEFENDERS sorry, I m not going to watch Arsenal play anymore. why? because I cant watch a team that makes money from player sales and cares less for achievement. Do you know what it means? Arsenal does not care about the Fans anymore. they care about the money. if not, why did they increase the ticket fee and fail to improve the team so as to impress the Extorted fans. Why will they easily let their players go for a good amount and fail to let in good well payed players who they believe might demand for increment in wage structure.
The truth still remains Arsenal management are Greedy and cares less for the fans but cares more for the money. If managers are being sold, Kronke wont mind selling Wenger and buy a BASKET BALL TEAM COACH to replace him for a smaller amount. Fellow FAns is it a crime for Arsenal to produce the World best player. hahaha of course we cant as long as we have bad managers.
With all this fact can I still Watch Arsenal Play if they dont buy a DEFENDER. Absolutely NEVER.
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Strange this is exactly what i was thinking when having my breakfast this morning, i would really like to see a more powerful experienced player in the defence, who you could trust to knock the striker off the ball 1v1, however it has never been an obvious problem, i think the main problem would be experience at this moment in time,
Gunner or Die
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i hate when wenger say “we have already made quality signing, u will see dat………bla bla bla…” this man will never change….. JUST SACK HIM, SACK HIM SACK HIM… HE DESERVES.. ACTUALLY THE SHAMELESS LIER SHOULD BE RESIGNING.
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simple bastard. these old skool guys should just leave the affairs of football to the young and not so old. reminds me of when steven g did one of those ads with world class footballers doing amazing tricks and his trick was a backheel. made me laugh at patheticness of english players. wilshire will change al that tho
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It is a fact that wenger’s ex-players are very careful not to directly criticize wenger out of some sense of loyalty.
George graham and frank mclintock (who were fabulous and rock hard players for arsenal by the way). havent the same loyalty. They are more objective and can really put their case.
As for the wenger defense..lets analyse the players.
ashley cole was an apprentice at arsenal when wenger joined.Campbell was a freebie. (although he made that up in fees and wages)..toure was a converted midfielder…a good spot by wenger and lauren was aversatile midfielder/full back. That back 4 had PV4 in front of them as well.
I dont consider that back 4 to be nowhere near as good as the graham mean-machine and dont forget those players were in place and helped introduce the wenger defenders.
WENGER CANNOT ASSEMBLE A BACK 4 NOW THOUGH CAN HE!….his pathetic signings of cygan silvestre stephanovs and squillacci…not to mention his belief in djourou and koscienly (who is improving but way off arsenal quality) should be enough to ram the point home.
Wenger wont learn..why should he?….he can make any excuse for any situation…..if we finish 12th he will say “we have had a turbulent season and its very difficult to replace 2 world-class players that left so close to the start of the season”…blah blah blah.
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Dear Wenger,
Self assessment may not be the best way foward. Your greatest weakness is reflecting only on your positive side ie i have brought in good players, good balance sheet, Good business sustainability model.
Have you bothered to be objective enough and make a reveiw on the negative side ie the list of flop players you have brought in as well ie Diaby, Denlison, Ebuoe, Squillachi, etc, the clud records you have broken for bad reasons, some running over 100 years, 8-2 defeat by M.U, 2-0 defeat at Arsenal by Liverpool, 3-2 defeat at Arsenal by Tottenham Hotspurs etc.
The great back five that formed the basis of the invicible era were inherited from George Graham. You as a leader/manager, you need to be reliable and not a lier. You are constantly misleading the clud with dishonest statements which have served your intersts in the shortrun but may not be sustained in the longrun.
You have destroyed the clubs brand equity and Arsenal can no longer attract/rettain good players.
8-2 defeat at the hands of M.U is simply an alram bell and signfies worst times ahead unless an appropriate intervention is done.
Your contuied suppport for the already failed youth policy simply shows lack of respect to the fans. Splashing 12m punds for a non tested premier league teenage, Alex and a 6m pound proposal for an internationa England Central defeder Carhill shows your lack of proirity/focus and respect.
You should not deceive anyone that if you were offloaded by Arsenal, that many big clubs would be fighting for you. To be hosest with yourself your policy,rigidity and record ie 6 trophless years canot last you even 2 seaons in any of the big clubs ie RealMadrid, Barcelona, Chelesea etc.
Your 20 strongman scouting team which canot identifty better players to fill in the positions of the departed stars and to fill in the missing gaps till now( a daY BEFORE THE TRANFER WINDOW CLOSES),are simply incompetent and should be discountuied.
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@wenger jelly tots,pls show me some respect I’m still the manager.Remember the season we reached the champions league final everybody wrote us off.We’ll win the league and Champions league this season.I can do it.
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No matter how much we Arsenal loyalists clamour for AW’s removal,the ONLY way AW will leave is when the Board tells him to. The Board loves the mulla he has made for them, so the ONLY way to influence the Board is probably to hit them where it hurts most to elicit a response – THE MONEY INFLOW .
What if we fans boycott the Arsenal matches .. that will hit the collections and maybe, just maybe ,the Board will get the message of what fans really want : OUT ARSENE, IN WITH RESULTS AND BETTER SIGNINGS
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