SUMMIT’S GOTTA GIVE
A highly-charged board meeting today will thrash out the futures of both Wenger and Arsenal... EXPECT FIREWORKS
ARSENE WENGER will today face the most important board meeting of his 21-year reign as Arsenal boss.
Directors will thrash out his future with a two- year contract on the table and the 67-year-old Frenchman is expected to stay.
But there are issues which Wenger is prepared to fight for and play hardball on and there are genuine doubts over whether they can be resolved.
He has hinted heavily he will stay, made it clear he wants to stay but has refused to completely reveal his hand for fear of then having to cave in at the board meeting.
Majority shareholder Stan Kroenke will be in attendance and yet it is chief executive Ivan Gazidis who has been trying to drive change and improvement after seeing the club finish fifth in the Premier League this season.
Wenger is determined to stand firm against a shake-up of his backroom staff and a director of football and also wants to be sure he still has the board’s full support.
Here are the key issues up for discussion: BOARD SUPPORT THIS is vital in Wenger’s eyes. He has felt frustrated at times, as well as isolated and short of support in the boardroom.
Attending the meeting will be Gazidis, chairman Sir Chips Keswick, Kroenke and his son Josh, Ken Friar, Lord Harris of Peckham, David Miles and Wenger.
Kroenke has great respect for Wenger and regards him as one of the best managers in world sport. The old-school board like Wenger but there have been concerns throughout this season as to whether Arsenal can remain competitive. Gazidis has made it clear he would like some degree of change and improvement.
This is the biggest single issue – Wenger will make it clear that he cannot be undermined by a lack of boardroom support.
DIRECTOR OF FOOTBALL
THIS has been a massive issue for Wenger, he has always been against the whole concept and the idea that one might be brought in at Arsenal infuriated him.
But a compromise is likely to be found on this with a lesser role likely to be brought in to oversee operations, taking in everything from contracts talks, pooling together medical information to logistics like first-team travel.
There is very little chance that it would be a big name appointment, but some sort of new role will be created to ease Wenger’s workload and help him delegate.
BACKROOM STAFF
THERE are concerns about some of Arsenal’s backroom staff, with fitness coach Tony Colbert and keeper coach Gerry Peyton under the spotlight.
However, Arsenal’s transfer fixer Dick Law is definitely NOT leaving this summer. People on social media seem to have seized on his name and blamed him for everything.
Wenger is fiercely loyal to his staff and will stand up for them. It’s a matter of principle. He went to the board to stand up for one of his staff when they were under threat by a reshuffle in travel arrangements a few years ago. He will dig his heels in on this issue.
Other managers regularly change personnel and Wenger knows questions have been asked about particular members of staff.
SUMMER SIGNINGS AND CONTRACTS
BIG on the agenda will be Arsenal’s intentions in the transfer market and the battle to nail down star duo Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez.
They have already signed Bosnia left-back Sead Kolasinac on a free from Schalke and want a new centre-half, winger and central midfielder. If they lose Sanchez, then they will look for a striker.
Arsenal missing out on the Champions League is a blow, but financially it will actually only cost them around £20million once everything has been taken into account.
It will not affect corporate or commercial deals in the same way it might have done a few years ago and it will not