Skip to main content

How Arsene Wenger Made Arsenal Lose Matches - Petr Cech

Arsène Wenger
Petr Cech has issued a withering assessment of Arsène Wenger’s final years with Arsenal, claiming that following “the Arsenal way” became more important than winning.
Cech, who played for three seasons under Wenger, said the French manager effectively gave up any prospect of winning the Premier League by dogmatically adhering to his principles at the expense of positive results.
The goalkeeper’s comments are more overtly critical of Wenger than any other current Arsenal player has been.
Speaking after he had helped Arsenal to a fourth successive victory in the league, Cech said: “In the past, I would say the ‘Arsenal way’ was more important than getting the points sometimes and this is not how you win the league.”
Cech said Arsenal’s failure to sustain a title challenge under Wenger showed the club had lost the understanding of what it takes to succeed.
Speaking after Arsenal’s win over Everton on Sunday, Cech said Unai Emery, the new head coach, is working gradually to release Arsenal from their cycle of underachievement.
He said: “This club have not won the league for over ten years. So, obviously, you need to get back into knowing how to do it. We started with the new manager from scratch, basically, and we try to get this mentality of winning every game, progressing every game, working every day and, hopefully, we can build this up and win the title sooner rather than later. That will make the big difference.”
“For any club who wins titles in the recent years, you have a team with the know-how how to finish it off, and you can see it in any sport. I take Tiger Woods: [it was] ten years since he won a major tournament. The longer it goes on, the harder it becomes.
“Sometimes you need to make sure you win an ugly game, when you are not playing well but you just dig deep, close the back door and win 1-0 no matter how. This is what we lacked. [Against Everton], we went through difficult moments but got the win with the clean sheet, so this is very positive.”
In a further criticism of Wenger’s methods, Cech said Emery’s regime was far more challenging of the players than his predecessor’s.
He said: “I think the place became much more demanding in every way. So this is great to see because this is what initially drives everybody forward and gives you the kind of kick, that ‘I’m not doing enough to start the game’ or ‘I’m not doing enough to keep my spot in the game’ because the manager asked for precision and hard work. This is how it should be. We have very healthy competition and we are actually taking the benefit of it. It comes from the everyday work and the manager’s way of playing the game as well.”

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Libya vs Nigeria: Samuel Kalu reveals Super Eagles’ 2nd leg game plan

Super Eagles forward, Samuel Kalu has revealed his team game plan when they take on Libya on Tuesday in the 2nd Leg of the 2019 African Cup of Nations, AFCON, qualifying fixture. The Eagles head to the game after a 4-0 win against the North Africans in the 1st leg played on Saturday in Uyo. Kalu who scored the last goal for Nigeria against Libya in the first leg following Odion Ighalo’s hat-trick said Gernot Rohr’s men will approach the Mediterranean Knights with aggressiveness. ”We are definitely going into that match with a mindset of get all three points. We will approach the match with the same aggressive way like we did in Uyo,” the Bordeaux star told Allnigeriasoccer. ”It’s not going to be easy because the Libyans want to respond to their heavy loss but I am confident we will get the right result.” “I am well pleased to have scored my first goal for the national team,” Kalu added. ”As a young boy playing football on the streets, I always dreamt of scoring for Nigeria, and...

Luka Modric Wins Ballon d’Or, Ending Decade of Ronaldo and Messi Dominance

For the first time in over a decade, somebody other than Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, Luka Modric is the world’s best footballer. Midfield wizard Luka Modric has been named recipient of the 2018 Ballon d’Or. The announcement came in Paris on Monday. The award has been given out annually since 1956 through France Football Magazine to the player of the year as decided by a panel of football journalists. The Real Madrid and Croatia midfielder breaks up the 10-year streak of Ronaldo or Messi claiming the prize. Juventus forward Ronaldo, the winner of the past two awards, finished second and Atletico Madrid and France striker Antoine Griezmann was third. Barcelona’s Messi was left off the podium for the first time since 2006, largely due to Argentina’s poor showing at the World Cup, but was a part of the 30-man shortlist for the award that also included Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero, Liverpool forward Mo Salah and Manchester United and France midfielder Paul P...

Liverpool vs Chelsea: Team news, injuries, possible lineups

Liverpool will tonight take on Chelsea in the Carabao Cup third round clash at Anfield. The Reds head to the game following a 3-0 victory against Southampton last weekend in the Premier League. Liverpool boss, Jurgen Klopp, has confirmed that goalkeeper, Simon Mignolet will start for the hosts. Nathaniel Clyne, Dejan Lovren and Alberto Moreno could feature in defence, while youngster, Curtis Jones may be included in the team if Klopp rests each of Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino. Dominic Solanke is likely to sit on the bench, while Adam Lallana and Divock Origi have been ruled out from the clash due to injury. Meanwhile, Chelsea on the other hand head to the game after playing a goalless draw against West Ham United in the Premier League on Sunday. The Blues manager, Maurizio Sarri, is likely to be without each of Antonio Rudiger, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Pedro due to injuries when they clash against Klopp’s men. Sarri may start Andreas Christensen, Cahill and Cesc...