GUNNERS: CHANGE OR GO ARSENE
ARSENE WENGER must prove he can reinvent himself as Arsenal boss before being given a new contract.
Gunners chiefs are adamant it will be a mutual decision if Wenger stays at the Emirates in the face of growing fan unrest.
That means the club must be convinced the 67-yearold can bring success – despite a growing number of fans calling for change.
Wenger knows he would have to revamp his squad after another disappointing season that has seen them fall short in the title race and the Champions League.
A two-year contract is on the table and it’s understood terms are agreed. Wenger, who has been in the dugout since 1996, would like to extend his stay but has yet to make a commitment.
Arsenal maintain all parties will decide whether the Frenchman remains while fans fear he has been reluctant in the past to change or spend big.
Wenger is under renewed pressure after Tuesday’s 5-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
The build-up to Arsenal’s seventh straight last-16 exit was dominated by talk of a training-ground bust-up between striker Alexis Sanchez and his team-mates.
Wenger dismissed reports but Theo Walcott – who scored before the rout – insists the players must stop bickering and unite behind their boss. He said: “You don’t see it often at Arsenal, things have happened. They need to stay in the dressing room and the players and staff need to sort it out.
“We are in it together here – we can’t be fighting each other.”
Walcott said the dressing room is still in the dark over Wenger’s future at the club.
But he added: “The manager has been taking a lot of flak in recent weeks and us players have been accepting it – but we can’t.
“We need to take the pressure off the manager and that will happen by performances. Who knows what the manager will do?
“Players just want to play football for this club and do well for the manager.”
Meanwhile, Arsenal and Bayern are both facing UEFA punishment after being charged over the behaviour of fans inside the Emirates.
The Gunners face a fine following a pitch invader while Munich have been pulled up over fans throwing toilet rolls on to the pitch in protest at ticket prices.