Arsenal: Arsene Wenger Shows Trait No One Wanted Him To

Arsenal fought hard for their FA Cup semi-final win over Manchester City. Throughout, Arsene Wenger showed the trait no one wanted him to: desire.

The recent struggles that Arsenal have toiled through have convinced many to suggest that Arsene Wenger’s time at the club should come to an end when his contract expires at the end of the season. While still a viciously divisive issue among the fan base, I believe those who want Wenger to leave are in the growing majority.

And it is an understandable viewpoint to hold. Since the marginal 2005 FA Cup victory over Manchester United where penalties were the deciding factor after Sir Alex Ferguson’s side had dominated the game, Wenger has been able to lead the club to just two trophies: successive FA Cups in 2014 and 2015.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

The defence of the club’s trophyless run was that the move to the Emirates stadium, that brought greater stability and reputability to an organisation that were struggling to compete in an increasingly money-orientated business, strapped Wenger for cash, meaning that he had to compete with big-spending domestic rivals on a budget a quarter of the size.

However, judging by his recent spending, that is no longer the case. He signed Mesut Ozil for £42 million in the summer of 2013; he signed Alexis Sanchez for £35 million a year later; he spent the best part of £100 million on new recruits just this last summer. Wenger has had money to spend and has still failed to assemble a squad capable of sustaining a genuine title challenge.

The biggest gripe regarding his management has centred on his business mind. The fact that he is seemingly more worried by the state of Arsenal’s bank account than he is their trophy cabinet. The fact that money comes before success. The fact that winning is no longer a priority, but rather, words and phrases like stability, economic standing and balance sheet are the ideals of the man who used to be so engulfed by glory. The fact that money has come before trophies.

But if you were to cast your eye to sidelines during Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final on Sunday afternoon, you would see a man wholly involved with the quest to win, irrate at every mistake, joyous at every goal, agonising over every chance and rejoicing when victory was his.

Next: Arsenal Vs Manchester City: 5 Things We Learned

You see, for every one who has criticised Wenger for relinquishing his want to win such that he can keep Stan Kroenke and his bank balance happy, Wenger made a resounding, defiant rejection on Sunday. He displayed the one trait that no one thought he had or wanted him to have. He showed desire.