And we've turfed Santi out* as well :-(

[Just Trent]

To be fair, appointing a man who's literally never managed a football team in his entire life to manage a club the size of Arsenal would always have been a bit of a leap, wouldn't it? There's a difference between 'bold' and 'utterly foolhardy' at the end of the day.

I know. But, Arteta was interesting and different. This is just a bit bland and all rather Arsenal. Also, that away record in his final season at Sevilla. How is that even possible? Even Gary Neville won an away game in the Spanish league.

[Viva Prat Vegas]

Maybe we can get Arteta in as Emery's No.2
Hashtag Solution

[Burney]

I know. But, Arteta was interesting and different. This is just a bit bland and all rather Arsenal. Also, that away record in his final season at Sevilla. How is that even possible? Even Gary Neville won an away game in the Spanish league.

Interesting and different are things that amateurs and neutrals like (at least in theory), but they aren't things that professional organisations staffed by individuals held responsible for the decisions they make tend to do.

[Ash]

Interesting and different are things that amateurs and neutrals like (at least in theory), but they aren't things that professional organisations staffed by individuals held responsible for the decisions they make tend to do.

Right. A business like Arsenal would never appoint a physio as manager, for example. Or the MD from the board. Or a Millwall manager.

[Burney]

Right. A business like Arsenal would never appoint a physio as manager, for example. Or the MD from the board. Or a Millwall manager.

Slightly different times, a. Arsenal in those days was worth tuppence ha'penny and wasn't really a business in any meaningful sense. Today it's worth nearly 2 billion dollars.

[Ash]

Slightly different times, a. Arsenal in those days was worth tuppence ha'penny and wasn't really a business in any meaningful sense. Today it's worth nearly 2 billion dollars.

The 'Bank of England' club, as we were known in Allison's day.

[Burney]

The 'Bank of England' club, as we were known in Allison's day.

Yes, because it was slightly wealthier than the other poor clubs.

There really is no meaningful comparison between the decisions you refer to and those today - just as there's no meaningful continuity between the club then and the club now.

[redgunamo]

The 'Bank of England' club, as we were known in Allison's day.

Slightly different times, a. The Bank of England in those days was worth about fourteen shillings and sixpence and wasn't really a business in any meaningful sense. Today it's worth nearly 300 billion dollars.

[Ash]

Yes, because it was slightly wealthier than the other poor clubs.

There really is no meaningful comparison between the decisions you refer to and those today - just as there's no meaningful continuity between the club then and the club now.

Actually the cost of the new stands at Highbury was an immense investment at the time. Of course things have changed but the point is simply that Arsenal have appointed unexpected managers before. If you want to dismiss that by saying that actually, no, football was invented by Sky in 1992 so nothing that happened before is relevant then so be it.

[Burney]

Actually the cost of the new stands at Highbury was an immense investment at the time. Of course things have changed but the point is simply that Arsenal have appointed unexpected managers before. If you want to dismiss that by saying that actually, no, football was invented by Sky in 1992 so nothing that happened before is relevant then so be it.

The problem is that, in financial terms, football very much did begin in 1992 when the Sky money came rolling in. That is absolutely the watershed moment when the scruffy, parochial game played on mudheaps we all grew up with ended and the gleaming, international game we all now pay Sky a small fortune for started. You could say the 1990 World Cup was the turning point, but in real terms, the Sky deal changed everything. The English game before and after that point are so dissimilar as to not even be worth comparing.