Ivan Gazidis, Arsenal’s Chief Executive, has spoken out in the defence of under-fire manager Arsene Wenger, stating that the Frenchman is still the right man to manage at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsene Wenger is still the right man for the Gunners: Ivan Gazidis
After a series of embarrassing results, speculation increased about the possibility of Wenger being sacked from the job he has been handling for more than a decade. But, Gazidis has ruled out any such possibility as he thinks the veteran manager will steer out his team from the current crisis.
In an interview to Sky Sports News, Gazidis said, “No he shouldn’t be worried, and I think what he’s concerned about is what we have to do to set our course straight on the pitch.
“Arsene and [shareholder] Stan (Kroenke) and I have been working very closely together, there’s no division between us, and there’s a collective responsibility for what happens at the club that we not only accept but embrace.
He continued: “Arsene has been an incredible manager for this club. He’d be one of the most in-demand managers in the world. We’re very fortunate to have him tied down to a long-term contract, and we’re lucky to have somebody that cares about the responsible development of the club.
“Obviously in sport there are always ups and downs but the important thing is to keep focused on what we have to do and make sure we take the steps to turn around this season, but also to make sure Arsenal can stay as it has for the last 14 years at the top of the game, and we look ahead to next five or 10 years from now.
Gazidis added: “I’m convinced that we have a really solid platform to do that. The financial condition of the club is strong, that’s the platform that’s been created over the years by consistent success and although we live in a short-term news cycle where every up and down will be reported in the news as if it’s a catastrophe, the truth is this club has been incredibly consistent and will find its way back to consistency.”
Arsene Wenger had described the 4-5 defeat against Blackburn Rovers as ‘a match where we score five goals & still lost it’. When quizzed on this and other disappointing results, Gazidis did not make any comment on the players.
Instead, he said, “I think I’ll leave the comments on the on-field performance to Arsene. Clearly, there’s a deeper emotional, disappointment we all feel at the club with the recent performances. Then at other times we’ve shown tremendous strength.
“Going to Udinese and going to Dortmund and getting results in those environments is not easy, so it’s a little bit of a perplexing mix of performances at the moment but we’re sure Arsene can turn that around.”
Tags: Arsene Wenger, Blackburn Rovers, EPL, Football, Gunners, Ivan Gazidis
