- May 12, 2010
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Oh give it a rest, it's arsenal ffs.Load of cobblers. When he signed Vieira in 96, aged 20, Vieira had flopped massively at Milan. The fee was £3.5m. For context, we spent £750k more on Ruel Fox a year previously. He bought Petit in 97 for £2.5m. Half a season later we spent the same fee on Mousa Saïb. Wenger also bought Anelka that summer for under £1m, while we were spending a then record £6m on a knackered Les Ferdinand. That was £750k short of the £6.75m Wenger spent that summer on Overmars (so no, he didn’t inherit him). More context: in years leading up to that summer in 97 we also spent £3m on Iversen and £4.5m on Armstrong.
Wenger inherited the defence and Bergkamp, but he added Petit, Vieira, Anelka and Overmars for a very modest combined fee compared to what we were spending to finish mid table. Then they went and did the double.
Fast forward to 2001, Petit Overmars and Anelka have left for massive profits and been replaced by recent Juve flop Henry, barely known Ljungberg, French international Pirès, a club record £13m Wiltord (we spent £11m on Rebrov that summer), Judas on a free, and Van Bronckhorst from the SPL. Ashley Cole had also broken in. The season following, another double and a significant net profit on player turnover. The same core of players would go unbeaten two seasons later, winning a third title, and reach the Champions League final (minutes away from victory) in another two seasons.
And as for inheriting a great core of players, those players finished 12th, then 5th, in the two seasons before his appointment.
Wenger may have lost his way in the last few years but make no mistake about it, his first decade was phenomenal, he brought Arsenal the most success they’ve ever enjoyed, playing the best football they’d ever played (and probably the best football in the league). He did that while being outspent dramatically by United but also by Newcastle first, then Chelsea, and even Leeds at one point. He has been a great manager and there’s much more argument that he’s been the best manager this league has seen than can legitimately be made for either of Mourinho or Guardiola. Only Ferguson has been more impressive.
Any Spurs fan who doesn’t wish we had hired Wenger instead of Gerry Francis is lying to themselves.
Oh, and as for ten years of ever declining series of LOLS, in that time they’ve qualified for the champions league 8 times and won three FA cups. We’ve qualified 3 times (soon to be four) and won nothing. Declining? Yes. Series of LOLS? That’s just ridiculous, talksportesque nonsense.