Is it me or are some trying to downplay what Arsene Wenger achieved at Arsenal? Which is strange because normally time is kind on a person’s legacy.
Graeme Souness was once one of the better pundits around but has got to an age where he’s starting to sound bitter.
Of course, he’s entitled to his opinion, but it is worth stressing he seemed angry on various topics throughout the latest episode of Three Up Front.
If he wasn’t so proud, he might wake up tomorrow and concede he just wasn’t in a good mood.
Simon Jordan and Troy Deeney were truly baffled when they were told that Mr Wenger was not a ‘football man’ and was simply ‘lucky’ to inherit a back 4 and Bergkamp, and that he happened to have knowledge of the French market while the country were producing a golden generation
His two co-hosts are not immune to crazy remarks themselves, so for them to be shocked you know you’re in the minority.
Let me clarify all are entitled to their own point of view but there truly are holes in his thought process.
Given the player he was, you think out of the trio he’s the most qualified to know that winning any league is more than ‘luck’.
It takes not just quality, but mental strength and team spirit to be the most consistent team over an entire campaign.
Look how good we been over the past two years, yet failed to get over the line. Shouldn’t that remind us all how hard it is to be Champions and mean we shouldn’t take for granted the 10 trophies Mr Wenger won?
Whether Mr Souness’ managerial career is questioned, he rightly points out he won silverware wherever at 4 places he coached. Yet he wants to downplay one of his peers winning 10 prizes in 22 years.
You would think Souness would have more empathy of how difficult it is to survive at a big club, the pressure at Liverpool impacting his health.
That’s not a cheap shot it’s just bizarre that a man who flopped at one of England’s giants would belittle the most successful boss in the history of another institution in the UK.
He doesn’t do irony…
It’s also wrong for the Scot to wrongly educate a generation.
Yes, Mr Wenger inherited our famous back 5 but he also walked into a drinking culture at the club, a serious issue for a couple of players.
A decent Cup side, it had been years since we challenged for the title. Look at where that defence was finishing in the years before Mr Wenger and where they were finishing once he arrived.
It’s also not true.
The Invincibles is our greatest achievement yet none of the famous back 5 were around at this point.
You don’t go a whole season undefeated if you can’t build your own defence. You certainly need more then luck.
Souness cited Mr Wenger’s refusal to say much at half time as a weakness. Yet how many legends have said this was a positive as it was trusting the team to find solutions?
It’s true that Mr Wenger didn’t always follow the traditions of the sport in Britain.
Many of his opponents would accuse Mr Wenger of being the worst at socializing, not popping into the office for a post-match drink of wine with his opponent.
Yet being anti-social has nothing to do with tactics and systems. It’s simply a man from a different culture.
I’m sure when working In Italy, Turkey and Portugal Mr Souness didn’t follow every ritual.
He doesn’t need to like Mr Wenger, but the Frenchman has earned the right to be respected.
It’s clear he gave his life to the game, putting his wife and children second.
It’s known that there wasn’t much outside the footballing bubble, his passion almost obsessive.
To say he wasn’t a football man almost belittles his whole story
Souness also cited being on the touchline bemused by what he would hear on our bench. Yet let’s just say Mr Wenger’s record against Mr Souness wasn’t too shabby….
Dan
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That’s a lot of luck, isn’t it? And over nearly 20 years. If there was luck involved it was probably Manure’s but that’s another story. Anyway it’s a ridiculous bit of nonsense commentary coming from a man whose longest sustained managerial success contributed towards helping send Rangers into receivership.
Does it matter what Mr Souness thinks? He’s entitled to his opinion of course but that’s all it is in the end – his opinion.
Matters to you though else you wouldn’t have read article and commented lol
Not really, as I didn’t bother (unlike other posts) to go into a great rebuttal of his comments. As I said, it’s his opinion and nothing posted here will change it.
Yes you got wrong end of stick
I said in the years before we had been a good cup team but were no longer challenging for league
So idea that Souness suggests that Mr Wenger was successful because of what he inherited is not true
It was his tactics and dietary , training methods
Not really, as I didn’t bother (unlike other posts) to go into a great rebuttal of his comments. As I said, it’s his opinion and nothing posted here will change it.
Dan
Have I got the wrong end of the stick and misunderstood your point about lack of success before AW arrived? The way I read it implied that there was precious little success.
Forgetting Rioch, George Graham won -: the League Cup and FA cup double in 92/93
93/94 UEFA Cup winners cup
1986 League Cup
88/89 First division
90/91 First Division
That said, I have only admiration for Wenger’s achievements at Arsenal. It was fabulous football and he changed the course of football in England. Magic. They were great times going to Highbury. Getting a ticket didn’t involve jumping through hoops and it was awesome watching the likes of Anelka. Not really sure what made Souness say what he did but his success on the pitch outweighed his career as a manager
Great article Dan – I’m afraid that, as time passes, Mr Wenger’s time at our club, will become a distant memory… just as Mr Graham’s legacy (as SueP pointed out above) has become.
For those of us who were lucky enough to have lived through both AW and GG’s time, nothing any pundit might say in a negative way, will remember how great it was to go to Highbury, knowing what we were about to see was going to be football at its finest, especially under Arsene.
I assume this nonsense was during a Talksh*** programme?
That would sum up its irrelevance for any sound thinking football fan.
Yeah on YouTube mate
I like sounness, but this is a ridiculous option.. Everybody needs a bit of luck to be successful, and sure Arsene Wenger inherited some brilliant players, but we wouldn’t have had that level of success without Arsene Wenger either – he had to manage those players and convince them to follow him, otherwise we’d have won nothing and he wouldn’t have lasted.
Also, the invincibles side was almost entirely players he’d bought and/or developed – only bergkamp was still a regular by that season, I think. It was an entirely new defence, including a midfielder Wenger convinced to play RB and a wildcard unknown player who started off in midfield and ended up at CB alongside sol Campbell.