2006 The Wenger Plan

2006: The Wenger Plan

The 2005/6 season started disastrously for Arsenal for one simple reason – the master’s master plan went off the rails.  Vieira was sold but the midfielder-cum-striker Julio Baptista did not join Arsenal.   If there was a fall-back plan (and I guess there must have been one) that didn’t work either, and the club was left with a double problem.

One problem was instantly obvious – Henry changed his mind about signing a new deal.  Another cock-up like this, he said, and I’m off.

The other problem appeared almost as quickly.  In midfield there was not enough physical weight to overpower the up-and-at-them style of football that the mid-table and below teams throw at skill based sides.  Arsenal started to lose away from home to the kick and kick style that we saw Blackburn deliver (unsuccessfully) in the Cup semi-final last season.

To be fair to Wenger, this is just about the only time his planning has gone wrong in 7 years.  His fault of occasionally buying players who just don’t look the part is minor when compared to the number of brilliant players he has bought on the cheap – and when we remember that the failures have normally come in for moderate sums – and often left for the same.

But we do need to have a player to replace Baptista – and one who is ready now.  It is wonderful to have the signing of unknown 16 year olds going on all over the place – but most of the time these people do not mature into first team players for several years (Cesc is a rarity in that regard).

I dont know who this replacement is.   Quite probably he is a Peruvian goalkeeper who Wenger has seen in a training match playing in Patrick’s old position.   But the guy is out there.

The problem is that if it were not for Henry, we could write this year off – one poor year among the endless years of being in the top two.  But Henry will go if we do not bring in a player as sensation as Vieira.  So we really need to have him in place in January.  One signing of a wonderful mid-fielder, who not only sorts out the away form, but sorts out Henry’s head as well.