FanPost

Arsenal's Competitive Culture (or the lackthereof)

As the curtain finally closes on Cescpocalypse, Arsenal (very likely) face the reality of life without their captain. And while much will be said about his time at Arsenal, and Wenger's handling of it, one thing is clear: Arsenal need to move on. They can't simply replace Cesc, there are only a small handful of players in the world with his ability. No, they need to move in a different direction on the pitch, in the dressing room, and in the team mentality.

Arsene Wenger would probably cringe at the suggestion, but there are a few things he could learn from Manchester United and their Knightly leader. Not the least of which is how to build a sense of competition within the squad. United's recent purchase of Ashley Young is a wonderful demonstration of where United win games and Arsenal lose them. Young is immensely talented, he's still young at 25, but most importantly he's experienced. He's earned his striped for five seasons in the middle of the EPL table with Villa, and comes into Old Trafford a proven commodity at the club and international level with a desire to compete for championships. He'll certainly be a major contributor in United's next campaign, that is, if he can win a spot.

See, Young comes to United at a position where they already boast both Nani and Valencia. Both players were stellar last year during United's 19th championship run, and now both with have to be better. Young's addition to the squad highlights one of the main deficiencies of the current Arsenal squad: there is no competition within the squad for spots. United doesn't bring in 18-22 year-olds with hardly any top-flight experience and hand them regular spots, they have to earn them in training, and then they have to keep them in games. The same can hardly be said for Arsenal, who seem to hand certain players free passes into the starting line-up, with virtually no pressure from within the squad forcing them to perform at their peak. Players like Denilson, Diaby, Arshavin, Almunia, and Nasri (for his first three seasons) wouldn't have continued to play, simply because they were young and talented. This isn't Fergie "hampering the development of the players," this is Fergie not coddling them, this is Fergie pushing his entire team to be better. 

Do I want Arsenal to splurge itself into debt, buying up every single big name player that they come across? Do I want Arsenal to give up on it's policy of "making superstars?" No and no. But I don't think it would hurt to bring in some more experienced, veteran players to foster some competition either. Every player over the age of 30 is not a disease that needs to be eradicated, the young players are going to progress and overtake them if they're good enough. Arsenal need to establish some competition inside the organization. How can the players expect to overcome adversity, if they've never experienced any in their own time at the club? The structure currently in place is the one that allows Diaby and Bendtner to think they should be in the running for the ballon d'or, when they haven't done anything to even justify a spot on our bench. It's the type of atmosphere that allows Nasri to ask for the highest wages on the team, after half of a good season in 4 years. It's the kind of structure that allows Arsenal, one of the biggest clubs in the world, to go trophyless for nearly going on 6 seasons, while United chases number 20.