Arsene Wenger under increased pressure after Villa defeat

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has come under increased pressure after his club lost 3-1 at home to Aston Villa

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has come in for heavy criticism for the lack of transfer activity at the club this summer.

The Gunners opening day 3-1 home defeat against Aston Villa has only added to the flack that the veteran boss is currently receiving.

Broken record

I feel like a broken record when talking about Arsenal in recent seasons. I am not an Arsenal fan, but grew up watching the likes of George Graham’s Arsenal and more recently Arsene Wenger’s invincibles.

Both teams had very different styles of play, but had one thing in common, they won trophies. The current Arsenal regime have gong eight years without winning silverware and it must feel like a lifetime for Gunners fans accustomed to claiming silverware.

The problem in recent summers has been the unwillingness to spend money to achieve success. I am not talking about spending major cash, but any cash. Last summer Arsenal brought in Olivier Giroud, Lukas Podolski and Santi Cazorla very early in the summer.

However, to counteract that spending sold star striker Robin van Persie to Manchester United for £24million. Arsenal have shipped out 27 players this summer and brought in just one, so they are actually better in the red this summer.

According to Wenger, the current Arsenal team are good enough to challenge for the title, but then again he has probably said that the last eight summers. The veteran French boss is an intelligent man, who is increasingly looking very foolish with his title claims.

Stubborn

Arsene Wenger is without a doubt one of the greatest bosses to have ever managed in the Premier League. However, the one characteristic that seems to have held the club back in recent years is his stubbornness.

Wenger has steadfastly stood by his ideals of trying to bring through young players and developing them into world-class stars, his latest attempt being summer signing Yaya Sanogo.

Money

Everybody at Arsenal seems to be shouting from the rooftops how much money there is available to spend this summer, yet it all remains in the bank untouched. It is true that money does not always buy you success, but it sure does help bring in quality players.

Needed

Quality additions are required for Arsenal before the transfer window shuts and everybody knows it. Wenger knows it, Arsenal supporters know it and everybody else with any idea about football knows it.

The Gunners have been linked with major players like Luis Suarez, Gonzalo Higuain and Wayne Rooney this summer. Bids for Suarez have failed, a bid for Higuain did not come off and the Rooney link seems to have just been media speculation.

It is all well and good to be linked with big players, but the Gunners need to follow through with their interest.

Concerning

The Gunners have been linked with a host of attacking players this summer. However, in yesterday’s defeat to Aston Villa the Gunners defence also looked vulnerable. French centre-back Laurent Koscielny compounded Arsenal’s misery by getting himself dismissed.

Koscielny and German defender Per Mertesacker started to form a promising partnership towards the end of last season at the heart of the Gunners defence. However, Arsenal’s weaknesses were exposed by Villa.

It may have just been one game and one performance, but Arsenal fans must be worried about how the season is going to pan out without new additions.

Chance  

Arsenal’s current squad may be good enough to challenge for the top four again this season. However, arch-rivals Tottenham have improved their squad this summer. They could yet lose star player Gareth Bale, but the players that have joined Spurs could turn out to be superb signings.

Brazilian international midfielder Paulinho and Spanish striker Roberto Soldado would get into the Arsenal starting eleven and are an example of players that the Gunners could have signed this summer.

Improvement

Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere came out after the Villa defeat and stated that the team must do better and that is exactly right. You just feel that with a couple of new additions the Arsenal team would be much improved.

The Arsenal fans were understandably annoyed at yesterday’s defeat to Villa and showed it with derogatory chants towards Wenger. The fans have a right to voice their discontent, as they pay the players wages and keep the club going.

Patience

The Arsenal fans that had not already lost patience with the Arsenal hierarchy before the season started seem to have now lost that patience. If the Gunners want to get their fans back onside then a couple of quality additions before the transfer window shuts would not go amiss.

Arsenal fans seem to have had enough of the penny pinching at the Emirates. Their team does have some quality players, but they know that with the addition of a few players the Gunners could be a major threat.

They must be majorly frustrated by Wenger’s transfer policy by now. Something tells me there will be some new signings arriving at the Emirates within the next few weeks and it will not be a second too soon.

Will Arsenal make any big signings before the transfer window shuts?