USMANOV TELLS KROENKE TO BACK WENGER

ALISHER USMANOV has told Stan Kroenke to back Arsene Wenger in a big way. The Arsenal boss finally ended speculation over his future by signing a new two-year contract earlier yesterday. It means he will remain in charge at The Emirates until at least 2019.

But Usmanov, who tried to buy Arsenal for £1bn earlier this month, has hinted at his frustrations with the majority shareholder over not giving Wenger the funds really needed to compete. And the billionaire Uzbeki has insisted he will be ready to step in if Kroenke doesn’t

loosen the purse strings.

Usmanov said: “I am pleased that Arsene (Wenger) will continue to manage Arsenal for the next two years as he is one of the very best coaches in Europe. What is now of paramount importance is that he receives the full support of the Board and majority shareholder.

“He has a great opportunity to deliver the success that the fans deserve and the legacy that his long contribution merits. However without the right support there remains a real risk that his legacy will be tarnished.”

That is why Gazidis said in April that Wenger must be a “catalyst for change”, comments which the Frenchman publicly said he did not understand.

It was one of his many frustrated digs at the board as this difficult internal process rumbled on through the second half of the season.

Gazidis has been able to make plenty of changes at Arsenal over the last few years, especially in the field of data analysis, with the company he bought StatDNA taking a bigger role analysing players and matches.

There is a belief at Arsenal that marginal gains will make the difference and drive them over the edge, as they did for Leicester City when they won the title more than one year ago.

“The differences can be down to small details,” Gazidis explained. “Periods when you are in bad form but find a way to fight through, a player who is available as opposed to injured, the right mental decisions and right mental approach through the year.”

There is a strong critique to be made of Wenger that his management style is at least 10 years out of date, if not 15.

The trend in coaching now is for complex, mechanised, systematic football, with players rigorously drilled in detail, especially when it comes to defensive shape and aggressive pressing. Nothing is left to chance and little to the imagination. That is the way, to varying degrees, of Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp, Mauricio Pochettino and Antonio Conte. But Wenger is different. Not just because he is much older, although he is, but his football is more about creating the right atmosphere, trusting his players to express themselves and work it out on the pitch. His coaching is more about cultural development than individual development. More about ethos, less about detail. He pointed to the new facilities that have been built and new improvements for the support staff. But ultimately all this is tinkering around the edges if the coaching is outmoded, and Gazidis must know that. Wenger certainly felt that the FA Cup final was the perfect argument that he could change, stay relevant, and prove his continued suitability to the job. That is why he told the Arsenal board to watch back the video of the final if they were still deciding on his future last Saturday night. But the cup final, as good as it was, was still just one game. The challenge for Wenger next season is to keep pace with Conte, Pochettino, Guardiola and the rest over the whole 38-game slog. They will have new methods, new ideas and new energy, all part of football’s constant evolution. Arsenal have been backed into gambling that this time Wenger will be able to keep up. – The Independent