Nutmeg Radio » Arsenal

VIDEO: Robin Van Persie Gets Close and Personal in Rotterdam

Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq. — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 13:08:32 +0000

www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2zI3yfcdmM

This very cool Adidas video follows Arsenal’s Robin Van Persie back home to Rotterdam. Appearances by Van Persie’s dad, his son Shaqueel, and one of his close friends, Soufiane Touzani, one of the top Dutch freestyle footballers. Sidenote: Shaqueel will be a baller. Arsene should sign him.

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Why We Should Ignore Arsene Wenger’s Presidential Slight of Hand

Miriti Murungi — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 21:20:53 +0000

“We’re invading. I’ve weighed the pros and cons and there is no perfect answer. We have to send a signal to our enemies – and they do exist – that their conduct will not be tolerated and that there will be retaliation. That signal has to be sent. We also have to make our best attempt to influence who ends up filling the power vacuum once we succeed in removing the threat. And we will succeed. There will be casualties on both sides, even if we attempt to minimize the damage, but that is a small price to pay when our national security is at stake. And no, this has nothing to do with oil or any other type of natural resource.”

- some fictional president

Some might say that Barack Obama’s job as President of the United States is to run the country effectively, not to tell you the truth. Sometimes effectively running a country and straight-shooting work well in tandem, but that isn’t always the case. That’s not an Obama thing; it’s a president thing. And as much as our leaders’ unwillingness to be straight-forward all the time pains significant portions of the public, leaders often need to employ the slight of hand to effectively and efficiently lead in a world of competing interests. Of course, this isn’t the only model of leadership, but history tells us that it sure is a popular one.

In many ways, Arsene Wenger’s role at Arsenal is no different than Obama’s role, or the role of any other world leader. Wenger is a coach, a leader, a father-figure, and a protector. But we should never forget that he is also a politician, and an astute one at that.

Wenger has a strategic vision influenced by aesthetics, economics, and long-term preservation. To achieve his vision, he often turns to political posturing, half-answers, non-answers, and obscure metaphors, especially when responding to the millions of questions about his transfer dealings. What about Jadson? Gary Cahill? No? How about Tim Cahill? Any Cahill? Hazard, Jagielka, Benzema, Tevez, Stuttgart, Argentina? Will you sign any of them?

My favorite response is the shrug, followed by non-sequitur.

Wenger routinely tells the public that he’s not interested in players when he is. He also has a history of telling us that players aren’t leaving when he knows otherwise.

Just last week, Wenger told journalists that “no one will be leaving the club” when he knew full well that Cesc Fabregas was on his way out. A few days later, to no one’s surprise, Fabregas was on en route to the land of sangria and trophies.

In August 2006, Wenger said that there was nothing in reports of radio star Jose Antonio Reyes going to Atletico Madrid. Less than a year later, after a brief loan spell at Real Madrid, Arsenal sold Reyes to Atletico Madrid.

The following year, Wenger told us that media stories about Barcelona’s interest in Thierry Henry were “completely invented.” That was in April 2007. In June, only two months later, Arsenal closed the deal to send Henry to Barcelona.

There is only one plausible reason for Wenger’s perpetual slights of hand. He thinks that the constant barrage of questions about transfers and his philosophy disrupts the implementation of his vision and his ability to conduct business as he sees fit. What is the value in being brutally honest with the public, telling the world that a player is unhappy, or leaving, or not good enough, or on his radar? You could take a myopic point of view and call Wenger’s approach dishonest, but you could also frame Wenger’s posturing as a manager simply doing his job.

Wenger’s comments have always been rooted in his steadfast desire to protect his vision and his players, not to appease journalists, opposing fans, or even the short term desires of his own club’s fans. You can debate whether that’s a good or bad approach, but when it comes to the man, that’s just who he is; it’s who he has always been. He protects that which he deems most sacred, his team, his Arsenal experiment. Do you really think that he doesn’t see fouls committed by his players?

The primary role of a manager is to create an environment to develop a team, and if holding the world at bay through nebulous statements is the most efficient means to that end, so be it. The confusing part is why this reality continues to confound the public when you consider Wenger’s painfully consistent approach to interacting with the outside world. He’s never going to wake up one day in one of those body-switching movies and turn into Harry Redknapp, Jose Mourinho, or Jamie Lee Curtis. He will continue to be the guy who uses the same language. He will continue to be the guy who only searches for special players who can add something (as opposed to?) and treats recovering players as new signings. But he will also continue to be the guy whose actions regularly diverge from his language. Yet, fifteen years into his reign, we still act as if his words should be taken at face value, reacting every time his actions don’t match his words as if we are being deceived for the first time.

On paper, the best politicians are those who can co-mingle the profound with the empty. They understand when it is time to share and when it is time to protect the mission. Wenger has been more than forthcoming about his philosophy. On that subject, he is an open book. But when it comes to executing his philosophy, just like Obama, Bush, Blair, Cameron, Sarkozy, Merkel, and other world leaders, the specific tactics are arguably best left close to the chest. That means looking forward to a mixture of straight answers, half-answers, and infamous Wenger-quotes. And we should stop acting surprised. He has sent the signal on countless occasions: judge his actions, not his words.

If his actions ultimately fail, like any politician, he knows he risks the wrath of the people. But like a good politician, he likely already factored in the many pitfalls of his chosen philosophy when he decided on his long-term, seemingly crazy vision of how to take on money with an alternative vision.

Fans may not like Wenger’s posturing, but they should really start treating Arsene Wenger’s words like presidential rhetoric, that is, unless they want to make the Arsenal experience more stressful than it already is.

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Test Your Maturity Level with This BBC Arsenal Video

Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq. — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 10:57:44 +0000

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Daily Banter – 11.2.2010

Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq. — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 12:37:32 +0000

I just read an article about … no, I skimmed it, but anyway, I came across an article about Jack Wilshere teaching Wayne Rooney a lesson. The gist is that Rooney could learn a thing or two about loyalty from young Wilshere who just signed a contract extension with Arsenal for some sort of relatively insignificant sum (in English soccer terms). I’ll just say this, sometimes I wish there was a blogging police.

Random Weekly Football Review: Around The World In 90 Minutes (3.7.2010)

Grumpy Ol’ Harry Puts Foot In Mouth Prior To Arsenal Loss in Carling Cup

The Chairman — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 05:28:38 +0000

Perhaps next time Harry Rednapp decides to mouth-off before a big game, he will think twice. Prior to the Arsenal v. Tottenham Carling Cup tie, Redknapp had a go at his Arsenal counterpart by saying that he wouldn’t follow Arsene Wenger’s example of relying on reserve team players in the competition.

Redknapp’s exact words were:

“The fans want to see some trophies.

“I wouldn’t want to be in a position where they say, ‘he played all the kids and won nothing, but he has a good youth team’. It’s not for me.”

Redknapp must rue his choice of words, especially considering the team he put on the pitch. Wenger, who normally plays his youngsters in an effort to provide them with first team experience, must have taken Redknapp’s statement to heart. In a surprise move, Arsenal fielded a much more experienced side than normal. Unfortunately for Good Ol’ Harry, he didn’t take his own advice and he fielded a much weaker team than could have been expected.

With big matches in the Champions League and Premier League cup competitions to juggle, perhaps the reality of competing in the upper echelons of the game is finally setting in. It’s one thing to wish for Champions League football; it’s another to actually compete on all fronts. Maybe next time Harry will zip it, or at least refrain from making such embarrassing statements. Taking shots at Arsene Wenger, no matter how comical it is given his recent dearth of trophies, is a bit over the top for a manager with two trophies to his name. Then again, that wouldn’t be much fun, so keep the quotes coming, Harry.

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Daily Banter – 8. 21.2010

Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq. — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 20:35:17 +0000

Your Saturday Beatdowns of Note: Blackpool severely beaten by Arsenal. Wigan bludgeoned by Chelsea. Toronto FC rolled by the New York Red Bulls. But as you digest these unfortunate beatdowns, please be weary of outlandish claims like: Theo Walcott has arrived. Cheslea are on course to score 8 billion goals. The Red Bulls can win the World Cup.

I often assume that people are smarter than that. But soon I find myself engaging in discussions that waste everyone’s time. This week I will try to count how many people try to talk about the awfulness that is Blackpool, when just last week they were going to surprise everyone by staying up, that is, shortly after pundits were painting the Tangerine-colored warriors as perhaps the worst team ever to grace the Premier League.

And then we had Allen Hopkins on Twitter today declaring that Arsenal have the best English player for the next ten years in Theo Walcott. Yes, after a performance against Blackpool.

The moral: We don’t always have to draw conclusions from every action. Sometimes you just have to let it be, people. Take the beating at face value. I hope you enjoyed today’s beatings as much as I did. That is all.

Daily Banter – 8.20.2010

Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq. — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 09:24:53 +0000

William Gallas is a man out to break records. Today he shows up to his third London club for a medical. Joining Tottenham, his former employer’s cross-town rivals, will hardly stir up the same type of vitriol that arose from Sol Campbell’s move in the opposite direction. Arsenal fans won’t hate Gallas because he joined Spurs. Arsenal fans will hate Gallas because they don’t like him. Chelsea fans know the score. But Gallas’ move raises another interesting question that I have no interest in researching: What player has signed for the most London clubs?

Daily Banter – 7.20.2010

Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq. — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 17:19:22 +0000

Cheaters never prosper. We love repeating these mantras that just aren’t true. Cheaters prosper all the time. Tomorrow, Arsenal get their Austrian pre-season underway when they take on SK Sturm Graz at UPC-Arena, the ground previously known as Arnold Schwarzenegger Stadium, a stadium formerly named after the man whose steroid binges built the foundation of a successful bodybuilding career, which was the basis for his movie career, general fame, and ultimately enabled his run for Governor of California.

Arnold was born near Graz, so it’s not that odd that a relatively small town in Austria is proud of their famous bodybuilding governor. But isn’t it bit perverse to name a soccer stadium after a man who built his career on steroid sandwiches? I think so. This cheater happens to be winning left and right.

So let’s be honest, cheating is everywhere. It’s not just Luis Suarez. We name venues after cheaters. We buy stock in cheaters. We hire cheaters. Most of the time, we turn a blind eye towards the cheating that exists all around us, which makes it a bit difficult to swallow when people get all riled up about a handball.

Cheating simply needs a new PR agency, like the team who created the pork renaissance. You know, the other white meat. Cheating is being undersold. Cheating can get you into a World Cup, help you advance in a World Cup, make you so popular that stadiums are named after you. It can make you Governor of California or even President of the United States. Cheating, all the kids are doing it. So why not be honest about it, right?

Daily Banter – 7.13.2010

Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq. — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 04:30:30 +0000

Apparently Spain wants everything. The European Championship, the World Cup trophy, the Champions League, your soul, better food, the Basque Country, dreadlocks, to host the World Cup in 2018, Cesc Fabregas, and apparently any Arsenal player who seems remotely talented. Granted, Fabregas is already Spanish, but his contract is not. Barcelona’s latest chapter in the “I want Fabregas” saga involved Fabregas’ Spanish teammates Carlos Puyol and Gerard Pique trying to force Cesc into a Barcelona jersey during Pepe Reina Presents, brought to you by your host, Pepe Reina.

In the history of soccer transfers, this must be the most ridiculous, unprofessional transfer ever.

Fabregas has five years left on his contract with Arsenal, his current employer. You might have heard of them. But apparently this doesn’t matter to the powers at Barcelona who always seem eager to wax lyrical about how much they want Fabregas to join their empire. To be fair, it’s no secret that Fabregas has always expressed an interest in returning home one day. But that still doesn’t give a club a right to publicly (or even privately) attempt to unsettle a player who is under contract with another club.

Bad.

But Barcelona didn’t stop there. Then the Barcelona members on the Spanish team seemingly felt that they needed let the world know, repeatedly, that Cesc should be at Barcelona, and that they were talking to him all the time about joining them.

Worse.

Which brings us to the most recent episode, Pepe Reina Presents, the show where Pepe, a Liverpool player with no vested interest in where Cesc plays, orchestrates the episode below with Puyol and Pique in a completely unprofessional display. Barcelona is now attempting to literally force a transfer.

Worst.

There’s a way to conduct business and there’s the George W. Bush approach to making things happen. Barcelona is now the George W. Bush of the transfer market. Congrats, Barca. Well played. You may get your way, but at some point, there will be a backlash.

Daily Banter – 5.22.2010

Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq. — Sat, 22 May 2010 15:54:17 +0000

Arsenal now has its very own Cristiano Ronaldo. If you turn your head quickly enough, or happen to be on a high speed train flying by Marouane Chamakh, you would be forgiven for mistaking the new Arsenal man for Cristiano Ronaldo. The Moroccan forward who has finally landed in North London on a free transfer from Bordeaux

may have the Ronaldo-style, but it remains to be seen whether he can finish in England like the banana hammock-wearing Portugal man. Arsenal fans will be hoping that there’s more to Chamakh than style though. With an overabundance of style, Arsenal is in need of hardened target man. If Chamakh plays as well as he dresses, Gunners fans should be pleased with this latest acquisition.

Check out the new Gooner below. The music makes me want to break out my glow sticks.

Arsenal vs. Barcelona: Nostalgia Distorting Reality