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Arsenal: Carabao Cup could subside Arsene Wenger critique
By Rory Picton
Arsene Wenger has never won the League Cup. Could a victory on Sunday in the Carabao Cup final subside the vociferous criticism from the Arsenal faithful?
Arsene Wenger has been a stalwart at Arsenal over the past two decades. He’s the longest-serving manager in Premier League history, is the greatest manager that this club has ever had, and has now won more FA Cups than any other manager with seven.
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But fans have been on-edge with the results in recent years, slipping out of the top four for the first time in his 21-year tenure and failing to mount a serious title challenge in several seasons. So with the Carabao Cup final just around the corner, is this Wenger’s last chance to add new silverware to his cabinet and re-affirm his place in the supporters’ hearts?
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He has not won the league title since the great Invincibles of the 2003/04 season. He has come close on several occasions, only to see his side stumble down the stretch, and now his career has hung by a thread as a result, with his increasingly insecure standing compounded by misguided work in the transfer window, Europe, and with the progression of young players.
The board seems content with just scraping by; the fans want more. Good thing, then, that Arsenal have a chance to win another piece of silverware on February 25th against Manchester City.
The Carabao Cup or Carling Cup or English League Cup, or whatever you want to call it, may not be the most prestigious trophy, but the Gunners’ could do something they’ve never done before under Wenger: Win the League Cup.
They play top-of-the-table City in what is the greatest test that English football has to offer. Even after City’s shock loss to Wigan in the FA Cup, in which the strategy of disciplined defending and searing counter-attacks was laid out, this still a mightily difficult challenge.
Having said that, they are in the final, and football is a funny old game. After all, someone has to win it. Why not Arsenal?
Fans frustrations with the club, however, are growing. They have been able to voice their opinions on social media, with some of the comments perhaps a little harsh, if arguably deserved, and some are adamant that it is time for Wenger to leave, myself included. So could the Carabao Cup, the last domestic trophy that Wenger is yet to win, subside such criticisms?
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Perhaps not. But it would certainly help. As Wenger desperately strives to end his North London time on a high, yearning for that ever-elusive league title, it may well be better to settle for something not quite as valuable but equally as significant: a trophy.