Quote Originally Posted by World's End Stella View Post
How about Arsenal from 96-05? 3 league titles and 4 FA Cups while competing against a club with far more resources. Which sort of proved that provided you made the right footballing decisions, you could compete with a much wealthier club.
Totally disagree with that. 96-05 was a period where if you managed to be ahead of Manchester United you were likely to win the League. 03 was it(?) when Abramovich bought Chelsea (who were about to do a Leeds) and the English football landscape changed forever.

That Wenger managed to keep us competitive throughout the period even if the trophy haul dried up somewhat is something to be marvelled at.

Wenger has always said that he will only spend money on players if he thinks they are worth it and will add to the squad. I think it's fair to say that none of us (even those experienced in finance) have the slightest clue about what financial constraints the club was or is under. It isn't just money that determines whether a player comes or goes (or stays) and I include wages as well as transfer fees in that. For some that is a big factor (convinced Nasri eg went for the dosh at Citeh) - for others not so much (Fabregas probably a decent example - he never hid his desire to go to Barca).

I look at the Wenger era very simply. Did he win trophies? Yes and more than any other manager we have had. Have I enjoyed the ride? You bet. Will he leave the club a better club than it was when he arrived? Undoubtedly. Have there been ups and downs along the way? Of course, welcome to the world of being a football fan.

Happy Anniversary Arsene and thank you!