Arsene Wenger insists he’s relaxed about the prospect of signing a new contract at Arsenal but again stressed that it’s not a decision he’ll commit to just because the option to extend is on the table.
The manager’s current deal runs out in the summer and while Ivan Gazidis and Stan Kroenke have both backed the Frenchman to extend his 17 year tenure in North London the 64-year-old has repeatedly played down suggestions he’s close to putting pen-to-paper.
Quizzed on the subject for the umpteenth time at his pre-Cardiff City press conference, Wenger responded to suggestions he might commit before Christmas.
“Why? Do you treat that as a present? The fans don’t need to question my commitment to this Club. I just want do well and focus on that.
“I want to make sure I am doing the best for this club… I am relaxed about the situation.”
Currently top of the Premier League and Group F in the Champions League and having spent a big wad of cash on Mesut Ozil at the tail end of the season it’s fair to say the dissenting voices (let’s not be revisionist, at times the frustration got to everyone) who wanted #wengerout have been silenced over the course of the last few months.
On paper it would be the perfect time for Wenger to sign a new deal, but you sense the boss is challenging himself after years of having his reputation questioned. It’s obvious how much he wants to get back to winning ways and if anything he seems to be using the prospect of a new contract as a motivational carrot for the rest of the season.
(Press conference quotes courtesy of The Evening Standard’s @JamesOlley and @Arsenal)
Too wise to talk anything about the contract and give media an opportunity blow any statement of his out of proportion.
Spot on.
In Wenger We Trust
Sign le ting
He’s a clever man, Arsene. Knows how to deflect attention away from himself and back onto the team. I, for one, am hoping he will sign at the end of the season because I don’t see anyone doing a better job than him.
I can’t think of a more relaxing thing than having people want to give me millions a year to manage the Arsenal..
Wenger is going no where until he has a champions league in the bag.
This year however
Were gonna win the league tm
“Deflecting attention onto the team”? I think not.
The only time we want attention on the team is when they score loads of beautiful goals on the pitch.
Wenger is doing the right thing by talking about his own issues rather than Jack’s oral or bladder emissions or Bendtner’s proclivities to public nudity.
Up The Arsenal!
He’ll assess himself at the end of the season and decides whether he’ll sign or not.
Just so. There’s no need to dance some media/press tune. It’s his decision not theirs. In the meantime, if we can win some serious silver wear come May, then he will see that as vindications and sign accordingly.
Simple really.
He has back-tracked on spending big on a striker in January.
Perhaps he is waiting to see if Stan’s purse strings are tied before he signs?
Spot on. Silent Stan’s recent interview massively changed my perception of him (his comments exuded passion about our style of play and character), however bottom line I still feel he values the ‘bottom line’ above all else.
Also, what happens if Wenger signs a lucrative extension in December, only to have won nothing in May? No doubt some fans migth view that cynically.
Wenger’s class is in stark contrast to Tottenham’s adolescent manager AVB, who tried to flog himself to Paris St Germain and Real Madrid, even before the season even started.
wouldnt you do all you could to escape shite hart lane too?
Sorry Mike my big fat fingers missed and I thumbed you down by mistake but it’s a massive thumbs up 🙂
Imagine the following scenario: Wenger signs contract early; big fanfare, etc.; for whatever reason (injury!) Arsenal stumble in the second half of the season. How will the reaction be then?
One might argue he should sign now while he’s on top, but I’m sure Wenger is too proud to be like that. If he can, he would rather deliver first. Else he would leave, having made the attempt.
I suspect, (as I have since he spoke at length about Ferguson going for ‘one last shot’ at the title last year, and how he (AW) got a sense of that during the negotiations for van Persie and during games), that this might be Arsene’s last shot at the title with us. If we win or show that we’re closer than ever, he’ll commit.
However, I think he’s being sensible by trying to deflate the issue as much as possible.
Agreed. He is essentially saying to the team: “I have given you everything I can to enable you to win the title. If you want me to stay, you will do me proud on the field”. Lets hope the players do him proud.
@ Jagger you are so right , i wish He tells the players this or they understand this and fight on till the end .. IN ARSENE WE TRUST… GOD BE WITH US TILL MAY
I just get a feeling boss will leave if we don’t win anything this year. The players should give a 100 percent in every game this season just for Arsene! Come on you gunners
Can’t spell arsenal without arsen (minus the ‘e’ unless of course you’re illerate.. but lets not worry about the spuds fans)
Classic irony!
Thank you dear AW. As you said before,We are now concentrating on our form on the pitch!!!All eyes on the ball!!!We think of the next game and getting the lovely 3 points!!! i have never doubted AW’s excellence and far sighted vision.when AW and the club thinks it is the exact time to talk about contract,we will hear from them with respect and i am sure AW will be with us with many more years!!!
In arsene we trust!!! come on you gunnnerssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss!
If it was any other manager, I’d be cynical about his reason and think “yeah right, he’s just stalling on his contract and itching to go to PSG and splash the cash”. But this is Arsene Wenger, and if his reasoning is that he wants to critically evaluate his own ability to do the best for Arsenal Football Club, then that is absolutely believable. The fact that we’re doing so well and going in the right direction (something that van Cunt doesn’t seem to like) explains his calmness about the issue, but also shows the quality of the man at… Read more »
Screw each and everybody (including Blogs at times) who ever doubted Wenger and did not want him at the club anymore.
It’s possible, indeed constructive at times to doubt/criticise, but that doesn’t mean there was a lack of respect for him – at least from my point of view.
It’s also brilliant to see us doing well again and I’m really happy for him too.
Blogs has never gone #wengerout. He questioned and criticized decisions made, especially in the summer, while offering his reasoning for doing so. I did too. But he never called for his sacking.
It is also okay to doubt somebody, even if it’s Arsene. I mean, even he himself is critical of himself. The alternative (blindly following/supporting without thinking why) is always worse.
I think the “blindly following Arsene” fans withered on the vine when RVP took his badger sex party to manchester It was bloody hard being on the trust brigade side – i questioned wenger but never lost faith = much like blogs i suspect… you could see the fog but new there was a vision in it somewhere. you could taste the failure but occassionally got a smell of promise I waivered for the first time when we were linked with Ozil – i thought (momentariliy) that this was an all mouth and no trousers pretend interest – that would… Read more »
Do you really think that this is all the re-invention of Arsene’s doing? Or do you think he finally listened to Steve Bould? Because let’s be honest, we were not always very cohesive when defending and our form ultimately turned around when emphasis was placed on the team defence.
I am not a revisionist. I seriously questioned Wenger’s ability to change and am happy that he finally did so.
You got your name right. If things go bad, blame Arsene, and if things go right, give credit to Bould. Where is the consistency? Wenger can take credit for signing Koscielny and Mertesacker, as much as he has to take the blame for buying Santos, Squillaci and Silvestre.
I don’t think it’s unreasonable to suggest Bould has had some impact.
Wenger hired Bould.
lol JT please dont talk such truths…. it has become custom for the arsenal fan to create blogs, not to support but to critisise like a cynic.
Obviously the fans know more than Wenger and have contributed more to Arsenal than him.
I completely agree that Bould has had a significant impact. My issue is with the fact that if this same defense happens to have a leaky patch (hope not), we might see comments like “Wenga shudda fukin bot Cesar” etc.
Wenger didn’t change. He was steadfast that his vision was correct. He always maintained that he would spend money when it was available and prudent to do so. He spend 42 million on a real moneyball in ozil He alwasy tried to find natural defenders who could work together in a simple but effective defensive system. He always wanted to develop a system that dominated possession and won the ball back quickly. he always wanted a team built from youth and bolstered by experience Its not a reinvention, its the inevitable realisation of his vision. Bould is a year into… Read more »
Remember all of us gunners fans im really happy a.w has stepped up again from these disasterous seasons of upsets & no cups so peeps went on about i blame the media 2 & certain officials refs & linesmen on certain games anyway look at gunners history i must add a.w sign unless important issue’s arise of course even the team want a.w to sign now then look at cesc euro cup winners & world cup winner coyg
What Leeds United, Portsmouth and Rangers had over the last few years were disasters. All we had was a lack of trophies.
For Christmas I’m bringing you a dictionary.
For Christmas I’m going to buy you a dictionary.
I think him, the board and the team should just concentrate on this season then go from there.
If Arsenal does not win anything at the end of the season, Im very certain that AW will not sign the new contract.
But having said that, even if Arsenal wins the BPL or CL or both or the FA Cup, he might still not sign the contract. He might then wanna leave the club on a high.
to be honest my first thought was contract negotiations take time, they’re not 5 minute deals and with games to prepare for hours of football to watch and tactics to hone perhaps he merely dosn’t want to distract from that? in which case even more respect for Arsene
Sign Da Ting.
I don’t think he’s using the contract to motivate himself, he’s using it to motivate the team and the fans. 1. After years of players making stupid/false demands for a display of ambition and using it to justify leaving, he’s letting the players imagine a little bit what they would be without him. Im not even talking about the Dutch cunt btw, unwarranted player cockiness has been on display since at least Vieira. On the current team, Walcott’s played this game at least once. There is no coach who adds as much to a players game as Wenger. Not a… Read more »
I totally agree, hes kind of saying that he doesnt deserve a new contract if he doesnt bring in silverware this season.. But if he does, then its the perfect time to go on and take Sepp Blatters job instead of singing a new contract..
Eventhough i know its the best thing to do now, i cant help but feel a bad omen in Arsene delaying the signature. Has he been really affected by the boos of the fans and the letter written by AST who claim to be the representative of all arsenal fans, which publicly insulted wenger asking the board not to renew his contract? Is he considering leaving afterall? Anyway i cant be happy before him signing an extension.. Hope my fears are unreal and he signs at the end of the season after winning us the title.. But i feel the… Read more »
Very clever Wenger…. I suspect he is not signing the contract so when we hit a dip in form (if it does happen) then thr fans won’t call for him to be axed and hopefully be more supportive to the team help the dip to recover.
No one I’d want to be manager more. It’s a little concerning that PSG have wanted him for years, and that he was involved in the Qataris buying the club in the first place. But let’s hope he stays at Arsenal for years to come.
Blog out!
If there’s one person on earth I’d love to meet it’d be Arsene Wenger. Such a philosophy, such a believer, such a genuinely nice person. Any other view on him is just ridiculous. I remember being in West stand lower last season and some one of our fans was stood up the whole game shouting at him to leave. Proud to say that everyone else in the crowd was either glaring at him, ignoring him, or telling him to shut the fuck up. I’ll be gutted when he leaves because I can’t see anyone else that can replace that. Going… Read more »
Apologies for the ambiguity, there were two initially, but one of the quieted down once he realised he wasn’t one of the army.
He’s going. We all find it sometimes difficult to accept reality, but the clues are staring us all right in the face. If Wenger really wanted to stay then he would surely have signed a new contract by now: I bet even he can’t believe just how well this season has gone so far. My guess is that he has had enough of living in England and fancies a return to France, i.e. PSG, for the final few years of his managerial career. Wenger is smart enough to know that openly declaring his intentions would hurt the team’s prospects, so… Read more »
“that gut at Southampton might be a better bet” Spoken like someone with a real knowledge of football management and managers. Arsene has spoken only this year about his love of life in London and how could spent the rest of his life here. That does not mean he won’t leave, he may. What need, though, is there for him to sign now? I don’t think the players needed added stability at a club with the longest serving manager in the league. I for one hope that he has a reason to stay; after seeing a very positive season that… Read more »
End is nigh?
I wish your end was 10 years back!
That would be before he was born, in mental development years.
33 people think youre an idiot, they cant all be wrong.
33? Try the entire population of Earth!
And its now 43
I think the fact that he knows Özil only committed the next five years of his life to Arsenal because he is the manager means it’s pretty much certain that he’ll sign up.
He is different this season, which Santi confirmed. I think he he has challenged himself and the team more. Just can’t see him quitting after this season after finally (hopefully) keeping all our key players. As much as it hurt the club, each one of those losses hurt him personally, none more so than Cesc (no matter what he says), just like the rest of us. We can all certainly disagree/criticize him at times, but there’s no doubting his passion for the Arsenal. Also, ask Henry, Cesc, and even Jack yesterday: “who’s had the biggest impact on your career?” Easy.… Read more »
What’s this Wenger to PSG non sense? Laurent Blanc is about to be extended for a further 2 years…
I agree.
Wenger will not go there (to PSG), ever. He might go the the Sorbonne but not to another football club.
If he finishes up at The Arsenal he will be retire from managing a football team
He’s not just a coach he’s a manager. Even though he is considered one of the best managers of all time I still think he is underated, especially in the last few years.
The last 10 years have been one of the best managerial operations in football history, and it’s coming to fruition now.
I hope Wenger stays for a few more years to come. This team excites him, you can see it. I think he’ll stick around for a bit.
The team below cost less than Chelsea paid for Torres. Less than United paid for Rooney+Rio. Less than City paid for Nasri+Milner. Less than Liverpool paid for Carroll+Downing.
Szczesny
Jenkinson Mertesacker Koscielny Gibbs
Walcott Wilshere Flamini Ramsey Rosicky
Giroud
Considering that Poldi and Ox come back in a months time, if we have everybody fit I very much fancy our chances in a two-tie champions league match against Bayern.
Wagner who?
Since nobody seems to have replied to my question:
It is just the guy who assembled the whole team. (No-one really)
It will all depend on whether we can win something this season. Im praying we do. God bless that team to win the trophies this season.
God is a Gooner!
magical Arsene
Hate to say it, but i think Wenger is leaving at the end of the season. I think he’s trying to leave on a high like fergie did. If he does sign a new contract, it’ll certainly be his last. I’ve thought long and hard, it’ll be really odd watching Arsenal without him.
There was an arsenal before wenger and there will be an arsenal after wenger.
Fuck you and your little piss-poor club of alcoholics and gamblers.
The club belongs to Arsene now. He built it from scratch.
Enough with you jerks and your ‘old arsenal’……
Hang on. At first look that might seem like a plausible thing to say, but it’s not.
The fact that the board chose to hire a relatively unknown guy, managing at the time in some exotic eastern country – a concept utterly absurd at the time – and then supported him through thick and thin, suggests that there was something indeed special about the pre-Wenger Arsenal.
The board has done for Arsenal as much as Arsene has done for the club; the man himself admits as much.
There were no invincibles before Arsene. There will be no invincibles after Arsene.
Just taken a look on the latest training pictures. Bendtner is in two of them, while Giroud in none. Giroud must be carrying a knock. Fucking doomed!
Theo must start up front if this is true
If Wenger decided to leave, we only have ourselves to blame. All the shit we Fans have thrown at him for the last 8 years will haunt him in deciding his future.
I think it is possible that Arsene may be considering retirement if he can manage to win the Premier or Champions league this year and that is why he is reluctant to sign a contract extension. If Arsenal fail to do this, only then he will then decide if he wants to give it another shot next year.
I cannot see his moving to another club as a possibility.
I think Arsene was managing in second gear since our move to The Emirates. His body language was of a man under orders, taking one for the team. You just need to look at the difference this year, he has his mojo back, he has the tools and you feel he can smell success is a real possibility. Last season i had given up on him totally and thought he had been left behind tactically but this season he has been so astute tactically and has reinvented the team with a new work ethic and solidarity. I love how the… Read more »
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. I want Arsene to stay on until 2023. That’s as long as he realistically could. Ferguson had 10 free years before Wenger arrived to challenge him. It’s time for Arsene to enjoy being The Boss of the premiership. He’s top dog now, I want him to leave only after a decade of success that he deserves with this team, and when he leaves he will leave a much greater legacy than Ferguson. In terms of off the field innovations and achievements Wenger is better than almost any manager in history. It’s… Read more »
(let’s not be revisionist, at times the frustration got to everyone)
not everyone….only the fools
those who know football and understand its complications and what this club went through had no frustrations other than watching a bunch of criminals either breaking our players legs or criminals with whistles blocking our way.
I still want a new manager at the end of this season and I have always said that I would love for Wenger to go out in a blaze of glory. I hope he will and I believe, regardless of my opinion, that this is his last season as manager.
I would love if he remained in the club after his managing career as head of youth development to keep his, and the clubs, traditions.
That said I wouldnt mind if he signed a new conntract but I dont think he will.
Yup, Arsene should be the head of youth development, for someone like Mourinho to loan them all out to Vitesse Arnhem.
Yeah 2007 should have been our title but went tits up when Eduardo got savaged and 2003 title should have been ours but for that gimp ref sending of sol in the manure match for what? Oh yeah fergie had the ref in his pocket
Doesn’t Wenger always delay signing a new contract?
Arsene is a great man. He has been at Arsenal for 17 years and has the complete trust of the Board. His contract is a non issue. Its like any other job where you know your valued and the contract becomes secondary while the job comes first. He could sign the thing today tomorrow or at the end of the season it doesnt matter, since it doesn’t really affect his position and thats a good thing. For me the managers contract thing and timing doesnt apply on Arsenal as much as it didnt at Man U when Fergie was incharge.… Read more »
Dont get me wrong i am pleased that wenger has built a good team again. I was only stating that when he does eventually leave arsenal will still be arsenal.
I am grateful for what he has done for our club and hope he can win a few more.
Yes i have questioned his judgement over his tenure but am very happy to be being proved wrong. Long may it continue
They want to pay me.
I want to get me on a free.
Problem.