Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis believes manager Arsene Wenger is one of the world's best despite not winning any silverware for four years.
The Gunners' last trophy success was the FA Cup win over Manchester United in 2005 with their last league title coming in 2004.
That record is unlikely to be improved this season with Wenger's men trailing United by 17 points in the Premier League table.
But this season has seen the Londoners lose ground on not just United but the top four as a whole with Arsenal in real danger of missing out on qualification for next season's UEFA Champions League.
Four draws in a row in the League, the last three being 0-0, have meant that Arsenal are six points behind fourth placed Aston Villa. Despite the club's inconsistencies this term Gazidis remains in full support of his manager.
"In Arsene Wenger we have probably the best manager in the world, certainly one of them," he told the News of the World.
"He is the one individual who has redefined this club. Around the world Arsenal are seen as the club who play some of the most attractive football you have ever seen.
"We've short-term pressures but everybody has to have a sense of perspective because if you overreact, that can be more damaging.
"We are still in contention in three competitions and while the Premier League is certainly going to be a stretch we're in the Champions League and the FA Cup.
"I'm a believer in Arsene. He's certainly not vulnerable. It's not on our radar to think about replacing an individual who has been maybe the club's biggest asset over the last decade."
Instead of pushing the panic button in relation to their current predicament Gazidis hopes his manager will sign an extension to his current deal in the near future.
"I think he will sign," he added.
"He's happy at the club and as long as he feels he's up to the challenge and has something to prove he's going to continue to be one of the greats of the game.
"Arsene Wenger has the club's loyalty and he's always shown loyalty to this club. He's under a long-term contract and I hope we'll be in a position to extend it."
Some Gunners fans fear that the Frenchman will grow disillusioned with life at the Emirates with funds at a premium making it more difficult with each passing season to compete with the biggest spenders in Europe.
"It's very difficult for me to imagine Arsene wanting to leave," Gazidis argues.
"He has the support of his board, the support of this club. We have a really good stable of young players coming through and the next couple of years for this club are very bright."
0 comments:
Post a Comment