Arsenal: Ivan Gazidis’ band of merry men get something right

Ivan Gazidis and the higher-ups have made some good decisions in the post-Arsene-Wenger era at Arsenal. They may be easy to criticise, but sometimes they deserve praise.

I’m not sure I’ve had thoughts like this since the David Dein era, but here goes… I agree with Ivan Gazidis and the Arsenal suits.

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I hate talking about people that have never pulled on a football shirt as a professional when talking about professional football, but they’re such easy targets for someone that loves to rant about Arsenal  — as much as I would rather they weren’t.

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Having said that, they really have just done what they should have done ages ago. I’ve spent so long disagreeing with almost everything they were doing, so it is only fair that I praise them for doing something right (even though it’s something that Gazidis et al. are paid to do). So, for the appointments prior to Arsene Wenger’s departure, how boldly, respectfully and professionally they handled Wenger’s departure and for Unai Emery’s appointment, I say well done.

It’s unfortunate that their track record in managing the club did not fill me with enough confidence to believe that they would complete this process so effectively, as these decisions could have made a real difference sooner than they are now doing.

I can only refer to Sven Mislintat’s German contacts as an example, as the roles taken by Raul Sanllehi and others are much less visible. But viewed as an overall restructuring, it does appear that they have delegated responsibilities to people with the specific ability to perform them effectively and given them the authority to carry them out.

There’s still the corporate undertone to it all, though, with the issue of ticket prices and the way they record and announce attendance figures still underlining the message from the top. If they want to record attendance figures like this in the boardroom, all well and good, that’s the place to do it. But don’t advertise your business performance during the middle of a football match. And don’t try to cover up the obvious underperformance of the team when it’s so clearly illustrated in the stands. If they can keep this kind of culture away from fans and players, then I would be happy enough to take this and ignore the shenanigans that occur at a slightly more palatable distance.

Nonetheless, there is enough hope, and some genuine belief, resulting from these decisions to make me almost excitedly tap my fingers against my armchair in anticipation, instead of holding them over my eyes as I contemplate another season of ‘challenging for the title’.

That would be my biggest annoyance on this topic — the language used by Gazidis. ‘Challenging for the title’ and ‘catalyst for change’ are great soundbites.  But when they are repeatedly not backed up by action, you begin to sound like the kid at school who cries wolf.

This coming season is the definition of transitional, and to dress it up as anything else would be overzealous. And, frankly, it is insulting to the fans that know how to read the small print. I might not want to hear the realism, but I certainly need to. The realism is that the club is rebuilding, developing a team that can qualify for the Champions League in ‘x’ number of years, and to then try and challenge for the title. But not before then.

Next: Arsenal: 2017/18 player rankings

I’ll reiterate that I’m pleased with recent actions taken, though. Gazidis and company have made a good start to the post-Wenger era. Long may it continue as stiffs in suits are subverting the norm.