Wenger mötte aktieägarna i en stormig debatt
Arséne Wenger mötte aktieägarna förra veckan i en numera kanska så ökänd och stormig debatt, där det mesta flöt upp till ytan. När man läser frågorna och svaren nedan, så förstår man att det stormade ordentligt. Wenger är en mästare på att undvika de svåra frågorna...
Som ni kanske förstår, så har jag inte ödslat så där värst mycket tid på att översätta frågor och svar, som är plockat från sanningsvittnet "news of the World". Läs och begrunda.
WENGER:
The vibes around the team are very negative but with the policy we've gone for with a young team, to finish in the position we have is not a shame.
I'm very proud of the team and I regret that, from the first day of the season, we had negative vibes around the team. It was the most energy-demanding season because we had to support the team against all the odds.
We lost Gallas, Adebayor, Fabregas and Rosicky to injury and lost Flamini and Hleb (transferred) and we suddenly lost the whole midfield, experience wise, and had to completely rebuild it.
SHAREHOLDER: It's about time the players took responsibility for their poor performances. They seem to be very despondent if something goes wrong, they don't seem to get up and fight.
WENGER: We play in the best league in the world and you do not stay 21 games unbeaten if you do not fight. What they have done in a negative environment shows they will stand up and take responsibility. It's my job to take the blame.
SHAREHOLDER: I don't believe we've got a player who's capable of being captain.
WENGER: Maybe we have too many captains as we've had nine this year, but I believe in shared leadership. Fabregas is a good captain.
SHAREHOLDER: You were quoted as saying, 'We live in a league where divers are rewarded'. Do you accept Emmanuel Adebayor is a perpetrator of the diving scam and many supporters feel his lack of commitment and arrogance would make him somebody you ought to dispose of in the summer?
WENGER: I do not agree. Adebayor's a great player who has done fantastically for the club.
SHAREHOLDER: A lot of us feel he doesn't bring great credit to this club and we wouldn't be sad if he was to go.
WENGER: If players don't do well, it is because they have lost confidence. But the best way to help a guy is to support him. Slaughtering him does not help.
SHAREHOLDER: It's very difficult to understand how we lost five international midfielders - including injured Rosicky. How did you think we could compete in the Premier League having lost those players? I just don't understand your mindset.
Also, I can't understand the swapping of Senderos with Silvestre. It seems totally against your philosophy to allow a 23-year-old centre-half to go and bring in a geriatric. Silvestre has been unfit for half of the season.
WENGER: I do not accept the statements you make about our players. Are you a shareholder?
SHAREHOLDER: Yes.
WENGER: You should not use these terms. You should see him in training every day. And I can't understand how we lost five internationals?
SHAREHOLDER: I'm including Diarra.
WENGER: Who are the other four?
SHAREHOLDER: Rosicky (who has been injured all season), Hleb, Flamini and Gilberto.
WENGER: Gilberto played 13 games last year. He is 33.
SHAREHOLDER: Yes, but we still lost that experience.
WENGER: We did not know Rosicky would not be available and we did not want Flamini nor Hleb to go. After three years a player over 28 can buy out his contract. Hleb requested a transfer and we could not stop him.
SHAREHOLDER: But how could you not bring in replacements?
WENGER: Because we had plenty of young players. If you don't play the young players you will lose them. They will show you they are great players. What I don't like is you saying I am wrong to play them.
SHAREHOLDER: If you had to pick out a couple of things you did right this season, and a couple you did wrong, what would they be?
WENGER: I work every day thinking about what can I do better.You make 100 decisions - only a fool would say he doesn't make mistakes. We all do.
That we have no trophies to present today, I'm very sorry. But the exciting thing is that, with me or without me, the future of this club is great.
What saddens me is that everyone believes the team is bad.
SHAREHOLDER: What was the logic in not picking Arshavin for the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea when he wasn't eligible for the Champions League semi-final?
WENGER: To give the team confidence to beat Chelsea and bring Arshavin on if needed, and the team would know it could win big games, but it didn't work.
SHAREHOLDER: What extent do you consider trophies and medals to be the be-all and end-all?
WENGER: I want to win trophies, but you cannot survive a long time as a club without a style of play. Today, Arsenal is hugely respected, with a massive reputation all over the world. But the smallest respect we have is here in England!
If I say, 'Today we will buy a £70m player', everyone is happy. But if we don't win, people ask, 'Why?'
But what this team has done, with the average age it has now, no team has done that. It's important to support the team.
SHAREHOLDER: Is there money to buy anyone?
WENGER: Yes. Who I buy is difficult because if you name a player, you pay double. We are not rich enough to do that. But we will buy.
SHAREHOLDER: We have some great footballers in defence, but they don't seem well drilled. Would you consider giving Tony Adams or Martin Keown a coaching role here?
WENGER: If we had a weakness this year it was defensively because, offensively, we performed well.
SHAREHOLDER: At Man United in the Champions League, you saw the way we defended the corner which led to their goal. The whole back four left three players unmarked, while Adebayor just wandered off.
WENGER: He's a striker, he was looking to get forward and score.
SHAREHOLDER: Isn't it the job of the coaches to make sure, when we're defending, a player the size of Adebayor is marking?
WENGER: Do you really think you work 25 years in football but don't tell these things to your players? You have to accept mistakes. With that goal I agree with you, it was a problem of concentration, but when a player is offensive-minded he can make this kind of mistake.
SHAREHOLDER: I've been mystified at the number of times players have been played out of position. Why don't you play them where they are best suited?
WENGER: You ask players where they want to play and they say in the middle. But you cannot play everyone there.
SHAREHOLDER: It's disheartening when you see players who don't seem to care. When we lose, you're lucky if the players acknowledge the fans.
WENGER: I'm very sorry. You're right. If players don't do it after a loss, it's because they are ashamed.
SHAREHOLDER: Nicklas Bendtner went to a nightclub (after Arsenal's Champions League defeat to United) while our fans were crying their eyes out, he was drinking £500 bottles of champagne.
WENGER: But that doesn't mean he doesn't care. People work every day on the pitch, and think day and night about what they do. They care about the club and want to do well.
These players are good and if you don't believe in them, you will regret it one day.
