Arsenal’s Road to Recovery : The Juggernaut Rolls On

Arsenal are on their way to cement the third spot in the Premier League it seems. Arsene Wenger has really turned the tide, yet again. It has been a roller costar season for the Gunners – sticks from the media, smattering of boos from the home fans and humiliation never seen before. Yet, they are where they wanted to be.

Fans will have to endure another season without silverware but they must be content with the present stability, especially after a bizarre opening few months where the club seemed to be sinking without any truce.

That day at Old Trafford, Wenger didn’t shout at his kids in the dressing room. Rather, he used silence as the weapon to shred their souls.

Time was running out from his hand. He surely should have known that Arsenal won’t be able to hold on to their talismanic skipper. He might not have anticipated the move of Samir Nasri to Manchester City but who would have known the situation better than him? He acted late, very late and almost unprecedentedly got involved into transfer market. The task of taking Arsenal upward was not only tough, but onerous. Let us trace the journey from that ignominious day at Old Trafford to their latest victory against Aston Villa that took them three points clear of Tottenham Hotspur who looked all set to challenge top two teams for the title, only a month ago.

New face at the Emirates

The team that faced against Manchester United had Carl Jenkinson and Armand Traore as full backs and Francis Coquelin – a 20-year-old kid as debutant at the centre of the park. Arshavin and Rosicky were the two senior men apart from Van Persie that took the field. Surely 8-2 is the spanking they deserve. Wenger came out of his ego and signed few players who could bolster the squad. He signed five players within a space of two days –notable mentions are Mikel Arteta, Andre Santos and Per Mertesacker. The new arrivals gave a mental boost to the entire squad and Wenger could reshuffle his system again.

Keeping it simple

Arsenal’s recovery started slowly and steadily. They didn’t make any sort of big headlines like Liverpool or Manchester City. They went on to an unbeaten run of eight games –winning seven out of it. They became the first English team to qualify for the Champions League. They lost odd games at the Ewood Park, Craven Cottage but they maintained their policy of getting maximum points against weaker teams. Further, with every victory they could carry on the momentum to the next game and confidence started to develop.

Importance of Experience

The signing of Mertesacker and Arteta signaled experience in the squad. Wenger knew that this squad will never going to challenge for the title. Finishing in the top four was the priority. Arteta aka “Poor man’s Cesc Fabregas” made a huge contribution. He brought certain stability in the middle with his experience, formed a good partnership with Song and Ramsey and helped Van Persie through odd goals and assists.

Improvement in Defence

Though it is one area which Arsenal are still vulnerable but since that debacle at Old Trafford they have improved a lot. The likes of Laurent Koscielny and Mertesacker did well at the back. The defence got a huge fillip when Vermaelen and Sagna returned to the squad after injury. The commanding presence of those two has kept Arsenal in a better shape defensively. Likewise Szczesny has been impressive too.

Henry Factor

Wenger pulled out a master stroke when he re-signed club legend Thierry Henry in January for a month’s loan. Forget about goals and assists, his sheer presence was enough to lift the gloom. Each and every player adored him and for the first time Emirates became united supporting Arsene Wenger in full voice. From “Arsene Knows” to “Arsene, You don’t know anything” could have been the voice, but courtesy the legend the rail is back on the track and running again.

Individual brilliance

This season it has been a season of superlative performance from their maverick skipper Robin Van Persie. 29 games -26 goals, 9 assists – Enough said. He single handedly carried the burden of Arsenal on his shoulder and delivered when they hit rock bottom. But, he was well supported by others as well. Song, Arteta, Ramsey, Gervinho, Walcott, Oxlade-Chamberlain were all brilliant in bits and pieces and helped Arsenal moving forward. The return to form Rosicky was a major boost.

Destiny writer couldn’t have written such a better script. Spurs were the darling of media few months back and their fans taunted, jibed their fellow rivals throughout the season, but how fitting the ending is as Arsenal leapfrogged them and now on their course of consolidating the position. Never doubt a genius, they say…