Is Arsenal Legend Status A Licence To Spew Diatribe?
ByToday, I’d like to pick up on a thread that has been lurking in the shadows of conversations on Stone Cold Arsenal, as well as a couple of blogs I follow. I see it as a battle of wills between the preservation of the legends of yester-year, against the perils of chasing the Queen’s shilling.
A couple of weeks ago, I published my reflections following the footballing master class Arsenal delivered to FC Porto. I was quite forthright with my view of the hackery and punditry that surrounded the match.
One of the readers called into question my allegedly strong rebuke that I unleashed on Mr. Arsenal, Tony Adams. Adams was on the Sky Sports pundit panel that evening with former Liverpool manager Graham Souness, and former Dutch ace and ex-Chelsea manager Ruud Gullit.
I don’t believe that my distaste for Adams’s naivety (almost even gullibility to the oldest trick of sensationalism) and his continued public utterances was too strong. In fact, I think it’s an opportunity for more debate as to whether having legendary status at the Arsenal gives you the right to unleash negativity in the form of an opinion and help fuel the more than healthy anti-Arsenalism diatribe out there.
This is what I said:
…The disappointment in their faces and their voices were louder than a thousand words. Through gritted teeth, they tried to garner the courage to set aside their prejudice and contempt of Arsenal and do the right thing of clapping their hands and stamping their feet in recognition of what was without a doubt, one of the best football matches we have ever witnessed.
Yes I’m talking to you Mr. Graham Souness, Mr. Ruud Gullit, most definitely Mr. Tony Adams (legend you are, but you need to get your snout out of the pigs trough and get some fresh air away from the bile that is tabloid punditry; being an Arsenal legend doesn’t give you the licence to unleash your negative diatribe to get a pay cheque from these cretins).
Yesterday, Ole Gunner was also derided for his views that Tony Adams needs to style up.
….I saw him (Tony Adams) on Sky last week saying Arsenal won’t win the league, & I was scratching my head thinking; “what’s wrong with him”?!
I think for someone seen as Mr. Arsenal it’s unacceptable to say that your team, with 8 games to go can’t win the title. Is that what he’d have said when he was Captain?
Just for the avoidance of doubt, I personally think Tony Adams’s comments in the media about Arsenal have been ill-judged and idiotic at times. There’s absolutely no reason to beat about the bush on this one.
Perhaps Adams’s most spectacular gaff in recent times was his quote about Arsenal’s signing of Thomas Vermaelen.
Thomas is a very good player but I don’t think he’s ready for the Arsenal. I don’t think the punters at Arsenal would like another small one.
The truth is that if Adams is going to stake his reputation on being the Arsenal Colossus of the previous generation, then blunders like that of misjudging Vermaelen puts his scouting or managerial prowess firmly in the column that’s titled Incompetent.
There’s going to be differing if not strong views about Adam’s perceived right to speak his mind because he has earned that right.
My question is: Does having the right to speak your mind for whatever reason excuse you from the responsibility that right gives you?
Arsenal is in a dog fight for the title right now, and all I seem to hear from Adams’ and certain ex-players are the good old fashioned cliché’s picked out of a bag under the pundits sofa.
They are the stereotypical cliché’s designed to pigeon-hole Arsenal into a certain narrative that tows a party line. And yet there’s no firm basis for some of the misguided truths and convenient lies peddled about Arsenal.
If Tony Adams is truly a legend, then he should start by accepting that his views will not only be peddled by the media shit stirring that we experience every day, but that they will also have an impact on the current players who are taught about his legend.
Isn’t it better for Adams to say when asked whether he thinks Arsenal will win the title – “If we win all our games, then we can”; as opposed to saying “No, I don’t think we will”.
To me, it feels like Adams has an axe to grind for whatever reason and he needs to snap out of his self indulgence following his management failure at Portsmouth.
Legends should be able to understand their role in the development of future generations. Tony Adams can’t do any worse than taking a leaf out of Bob Wilson’s book.
Wilson has publicly stated that his biggest gripe is directed at ex-Arsenal players who are making a living out of punditry by constantly deriding Arsenal.
The thing is that as a legend, Wilson is vociferous in his support of Arsenal, and even takes the time to talk doubters through the development successes and challenges of the team without having to be negative.
I don’t subscribe to the notion that since someone is a legend, we should therefore let their opinions go unchecked.
What are your views? Do you think that this so called right to speak one’s mind is counter-productive in the manner of its delivery or in its timing?
Let’s hear your two pennies worth.
Tue 13th September 2011; 19:45, Dortmund
Legends or not these x-players should watch what they say about the club that made them. Them being legends doesn’t excuse their poor choice of words.How come it’s Arsenal that has insufferable legends anyway?I have heard little about other clubs’ ex-players deriding and thinking so little of their former clubs.
And hollis if you are reading please spare me the “he is a legend and he did more for this club so he is entitled bullshit”
Fair comment, you could also add the one Ian Wright to your list of ex-Arsenal players whom come out with the most ridiculous statements
Agree completely…whatever they actually think, they should always back the club in public.
Good blog. I must admit I have been thinking the same thing for a while. Whilst a lot of our ex stars deserve our thanks and respect, I can’t help but think, nae know that a few are thick as mince (messrs Adams and Merson) to prove my point.
I have listened to most of their views and am shocked that they say such things about the current crop, especially given that they continue to make a mockery of their views with results. I perhaps think that they may have an axe to grind that they are no longer at the club, such as other ex stars, like Bould.
Rich.
There is a theory that the ex-players who spew the most diatribe and venom are the one’s who Wenger showed the door or the one’s who left Arsenal gagainst teir will.
With Adams, there’s speculation that Wenger privately voiced his doubts about Adams’ ability to manage Portsmouth.
Other ex-players such as Ray Parlour and Bob Wilson stick their necks out and risk getting slaughtered by the establishment for the continuous support they show the club – especially during difficult times.
GunnerX, Ian Wright is most definitely in this category. I’ll get to him soon enough….LOL! But listening to him talk about Arsenal just makes me cringe.
@Firstlady, it’s actually rare to come across ex-players from other clubs trashing their former clubs.
I dont see what the problem is.
There a hundreds of Arsenal fans on the internet everyday, spouting view after view at an astonishing rate of words. And guess what? Those views vary from positive to negative, I cannot count the number of posts that have been blogged by fans/supporters who were so convinced we were never going to challenge ever again under the stewardship of AW that it became incredibly negative.
Out of the former players doing the media circuit, I find that Wright tends to be the most negative, followed by Adams. Merse seems to be failry balanced whenever I have heard him (i.e. he sees the weakesses that we all have, and loves teh strengths as we all do: another top quality striker for the really big games, central defence). Dixon and Keown are definitely pro-Arsenal and subtly defend when they can. But Winterburn is my favourite, as he is unashamedly pro and doesn’t try and hide it.
If we are allowed to state opinions, as humble fans, than so are ex-players. They key thing to remember is that they are just that opinions. They should not effect the teams and its probably what gets them paid.
I deliberately have not mentioned Smith above, as I think he has defo sold out. He is smart and realised fairly quickly that negativity sells better than balanced articles. But then again, its his opionion and he is entitled to it. Donut.
Finally, if I thought it affected the team, than I would be more upset, but I don’t think it does as AW seems to have bonded this group so tight that media opinons bounce off. In fact, my greater concern is the lack of support players who have been deemed worthy of putting on the famous red-and-white get at the Emirates, than by any attack by any ex-player.
Excellent points.
I see nothing wrong if he wants to spew his opinion – negative or positive. However, he is making a bed with the enemy and Arsenal fans will ‘not’ forget.
Ex-player or not, people are entitled to their opinions. He’s not there to represent or motvate Arsenal, he’s there to give his point of view. I can’t understand so-called fans that can’t handle the slightest opinion that is contrary to theirs. I commend these guys that come out and say what they feel and robotic rose-tinted spectacled opinion. Do you think Arsenal will not win the league because Tony Adams said they wouldn’t? Winning trophies is about what those guys are doing out there on the pitch and not what ex-players are saying in a television studio. You put too much importance in what they say, trophies are not won by opinions.
Mark.
Do you think that the fact that they make a living out of their association with Arsenal makes it more likely that their opinions are used to shape views and support stereotypes?
No one is arguing that they have an opinion; not everyone with an opinion about Arsenal is commercializing that opinion.
We shouldn’t under-estimate the power the media wield while using these so called opinions from ex-players.
Adams is a legend at Arsenal and is entitled to his opinion .His problem is the his views on players and the way the game should be played are total crap.Like Wrighty he is terrified people will view him as biased towards Arsenal ,and will not be given the chance to earn a few quid on T.V Frank Mclintock got the boot when they got fed up with his love for the gunners
Absolutely spot on – Tony Adams should look at Alan Smith, who will not and has not derided the club in public.
I agree that these people talk trash about Arsenal because they get paid to.
Keep up the good work!
“I perhaps think that they may have an axe to grind that they are no longer at the club, such as other ex stars, like Bould.” Rich that would make more sense coz honestly some of the stuff these x-players say is crazy.
I think I preferred the Adams who used to drunkenly fall down stairs in bars in Stoke Newington to the pseudo-intellectual image he’s cultivated post rehab that actually exposes his shocking lack of intelligence.
Couldn’t agree more. The man talks garbage, and is living proof of what the grog will do to your brain (Merse, take note.) For my weekly Ex-Arsenal player punditry, I listen to Smudger and Parlour, but without anyshadow of a doubt, Champagne Charlie is the man for me. Always says ‘we’ when talking about ‘THE Arsenal’ as he so eloquently puts it, and will not hear a bad word against them. I love him. Wrighty’s just a media bitch anyway, I wouldn’t listen to him….
I think that the problem for the older generation of ex-Gunners is that if the style of Wenger’s new generation of players were to succeed, it would be an implicit condemnation of their own style of play as old fashioned and out of date.
Indicative of this are the frequently snyde remarks of George Graham, for whom Ian Wright and Tony Adams were emblematic players. It hurts to acknowledge that athleticism, guile and ball skills have moved on since their successes.
Wright, in particular, cannot bear being dethroned by Henry as top goal-scorer, the latter a pioneer and defender of Wenger’s new style of “beautiful football”.
lets make myself perfectly clear on this. ADAMS IS A DULLARD. he has failed at coaching, and managing. He regular spouts fantasy about his job prospects, and even offers that appear known only to him and not his prospective employer.
He is an alcoholic. Are there any still with a full set of marbles. NO. so called legend he maybe, but such status refers to history. Today the man is an embarrassment to the name of Arsenal
Darius,
His opinions obviously haven’t swayed your viewpoint or that of many others has it? When an ex-player like Parlour comes on and ignores the obvious just because he wants to talk pro-Arsenal, it actually makes him come across as opinionated. In many cases, the likes of Wright and Adams base their opinions on facts. It’s Smith who I sometimes get a little annoyed at because he sounds like he has never had any affiliation with the club. But again, it’s his opinion, I have mine and very often they’re different. When I hear ex-players talk almost anti-Arsenal, it makes it more interesting viewing for me as an Arsenal fan. The Parlour approach bores me to be honest.
@Bob.
Champagne Charlie’s shameless defense of Arsenal, especially on Jeff Stelling’s kitchen cabinet is lovely to watch.
I must admit hthough – I do like Jeff Stelling and his professional grasp of the game and his enthusiasm when presenting Soccer Saturday. It’s a shame he’s a Hartlipool fan.
Merse and Adams I agree have issues with what chucks out of their gob.
Sorry I mean to say Parlour was UN-opinionated.
Top article.
There is a need to address this issue! Every week Arsenal get it from all directions about the faliures of the players. That’s why a title win would be the greatest ever no matter what anyone says. The media has hated wenger for years for making the premier league full of foriegn players rather than see it as now English player are technically better for it and are in a position to possibly win the world cup!
The one legend in the UK I believe should be Mr Arsenal and a lot of ex arsenal players should learn from is CHARLIE NICOLAS!! He sits in the sky studio week after week pouring out positivity for HIS Arsenal despite what the rest of the panel say. It should be a smack in the face that they regularly have both him and Paul merson on the panel simply because they know merson always has a negative axe to grind against arsenal which i think stems from wenger letting him go.
The definition of an Arsenal legend should be changed & earned after retirement. How can the likes of Solskjear be telling TONY ADAMS about his negativity against his own team. Its discraceful that i’m with him on it. its not the begining of the season anymore its nearing the end. we’re in the race on two fronts so why arent they supporting the club? They must understand the boys hear and read the stuff the say. so to hear a TOP legend at the club say some of the thing that comes out of their mouths is shocking.
SO I SAY SORT IT OUT ADAMS, MERSON & CO………… because I SUPPORT ARSENAL FOOTBALL CLUB NOT ANY PARTICULAR PLAYER FROM THE PAST OR PRESENT AND I’LL ALWAYS DEFEND MY CLUB! FULL STOP!
Tony Adams said that he thought Arsenal wouldn’t win the league when asked.
Whilst it may be preferable that he lied, it is his opinion.
As with many ex-players, what he says in the media will be of very little significance compared to what he did for over two decades for Arsenal. Maybe for the overly high-strung of the blog world, for whom the news of each day needs to create a stir and some excitement, it does. In the big picture, he was a great, great player, and a hero to many. He earned ‘Mr Arsenal’, no one else did, the more damning on here would do well to remember that.
Adams was a great player, he is a shit pundit. (In truth he is barely coherent in anything he says anymore and is something of a slapstick impression of a recovered lush, with his new found spiritualism.) One matters hugely, as with most of the media, sorry to our host blog, but the other has very little significance. Actions speak louder than words.
ANt, unfortunately they will never make you a oundit because it is obvious that you confuse opinions with support. If punditry were about support, tv stations would save themselves a heck of a lot of money and just stick in Joe blog supporters every week. I support my beloved Arsenal but hey many a time, my opinions are anti-establishment. Support does not mean blind following.
Mark.
I hear where you’re coming from. I guess a question I would ask is whether it’s right to earn your corn by deliberately being negative, or being negative because you’re naive or gullible.
If he was just Rodders from down Peckham way, that’s fine, but if you’re suggesting that your making your reputation on being Mr. Arsenal, then it’s a different thing.
Also, I think it’s worth pointing out that even the positive minded ex-players are not blind to the challenges and issues this team has…they’re preference is clearly to talk about them in a more constructive light.
Only recently, Flint gave us a practical example of the falsehoods being peddled that we all get to believe as urban myths. This was the case of pointing out that statistically, Wenger’s teams have as good if not better a defensive record than the Graham teams that these ex-players played in – yet they will continually cite defense as a stick to beat Arsenal with.
Darius, I think the source of our frustrations with former players become pundits is that they are people in whom we have invested a great deal of our own emotional currency and with whom we at one time shared common goals and passions. We become disappointed, amazed even when we find that once the player is no longer with the club that they chose to sever the common bond that bound us together – the insatiable desire to see Arsenal win and support for everything the players achieve for us. We look to them to provide an oasis of partisan comment amid the desert of negativity spread by Keys, Tyldesley and the like and are upset when the toe the negative line spun from their anti Arsenal hosts. Ultimately there is a distinction to be made between those who see themselves as media professionals whose opinion would be sought regardless of the colour shirt their achievements were made and those who never forget their roots or the bond with the fans and have become our representatives on air. Adams for all his achievements seems to have an intuitive knack for saying the wrong thing. Platt appears to regret his time with us but worst of all is Wright. When you see his cheerleading approach to punditry when England are involved his reluctance to support the team that made him a hero seems like a calculated grievance against those who vociferously cheered his every action for so many years. Is this the case with other teams? Hansen, Lawrenson, Redknapp and Schmiechel are clearly still fans and at times there perceptible bias can annoy or amuse us. Perhaps the fault lies not with the pundit but with the TV company who hire pundits without giving thought to the views they may give or the annoyance caused by their lack of partisanship. Why anyone would hire Platt to comment on an Arsenal game is beyond me – they might as well hire Ruud van Nistelrooy for all the backing or insight he gives to our team. Give me Wilson, Parlour, Keown, Dixon, Winterburn over the rest any time. With any luck we’ll see Vieira or Henry in the studio in future – I’m sure they won’t disappoint.
MARK.
I’m not talking about blind following the team mate. I’m talking about what kind of impression you give the players now. Should mr arsenal not try to encourage? its simple wording i’m talking about. encouraging the team. if that makes me a fool then so be it.
What does phil thompson do when on a panel? why do sky have former player sit in on games? its all to represent THEIR CLUB. Thats all i’m asking for.
If fans criticise wenger, why cant i do the same of adams etc etc? its MY OPINION!
with 8 games to go in the league a man who been in the title race and supports a club!!! even if he’s on a pundits panel should know the things the player need to hear! especially ones so young!
Thats my point mate. he should be much more clever if he is mr Arsenal that he’s helping the club now too as well as being a legend of a player in his day!
Tony Adams.., as much as i love what he did for us, it always astonishes me how little some people who have spent their life in the game know about football.
Likewise, i have nothing but love for the time Wrighty spent here as a player.., but as a pundit,columnist/dodgy talkshow host.., he just comes across as a bit of a prat, frankly.
Merse is merse, crazy bastard. Smudger, dixon, keown and winterburn i have no problems with.
As for the man.., step forward ‘Champagne’ Charlie Nicholas. Insightful, balanced and Arsenal.., Legend!
J you hit the nail on the head there mate!
PLATT HAS ALWAYS GOT ON MY GOAT WHEN HE’S PICEK AS AN EX-ARSENAL PLAYER-LOOKS & SOUNDS AS MISERABLE AS SIN-PRAISING THROUGH GRITTED TEETH-IS A MANC & PROB FOLLOWS manure !but i’m of the opinion that all our ex-players should support us in the media-who after all have a hidden agenda in trying to stich us up-you only have to listen to the likes of keys,clive “i luv manure”tyldesley,jon “i hate arsenal”champion,gary”the crisp”lineker,alan”in yer face”hansen etc etc etc….
@ Darius
I agree, it is very disappointing for the fans when a person whom you admired as a player seems lukewarm or even entirely lacking in his support. No-one has to lie, but a) you can choose what to say, and b) you can make criticisms without being generally down on the club. I think Keown and Robson do this – they are hard to please, but there is never any doubt who they want to succeed! You can feel the love as well as hearing the strictures. In the case of some other pundits or commentators, you really wonder.
And also in the case of Robson, his criticisms are intelligent and not simply a repetition of out-of-date cliches.
@ Mark
I understand the point you are making about excessive sensitivity, but I think it is answered very eloquently by Beardy. The continual criticism of, or failure to back Arsenal feels like a betrayal – and the fact that they are doing it to advance their careers, or for money makes it worse. And at this stage of the season, given where we are, not giving us a chance of the title also seems perverse!
(As an example – unrelated to punditry – we hate Ashley Cole because we loved him so much. He had come up through the ranks and was one of us.)
But the question I would pose to you is, why do ex-players from other clubs always back their old clubs? Why is it just some of the ex-Arsenal players who don’t? That suggests to me that we fans ARE entitled to expect a public display of support for the club, because that is what Pool and ManU and Chelsea get from their legends.
Darius, you need to explain what you mean by “down Peckham way”. By the way, good post.
Merson has publicly stated on Sky that he is a Chelsea fan; so for me, his legendary status end from the day I heard that. I never take whatever he says seriously. Anyway his punditry is so very naive that a cricket player will do better.
Adams have issue with Wenger which is clouding his judgement; and I dare say he has no way of sorting it. His rating in relation to what he wants is at mediocre level. so expect more diatribe from him.
As for Wright, he simply does not have the intelligence to go with his legendary status. He is also the equivalent of a media whore.
Having said that, both Adams and Wright are still legends. I just hope they don’t talk themselves out of legendary status. Yes they have rights to their opinion; so do we. How will any fan feel if your former manager goes on to trash your ability to do your work in public after only looking at you from afar?
I think what grates the most is when they were players, we – the supporters backed them in what seemed at the time immpossible odds ( e.g @anfield 89, cup winners cup against parma etc) but when its their turn to support the team they come out with such horse manure that its pains us fans to hear such lack of belief.
Ian Wright has gone right down into the spit bucket in my view – always says what the sun editors love to hear. that line about rocastle turning in his grave was lower than shark shit.
thank the lord for the likes of wilson, parlour, groves, henry, bregkamp, pires etc – they get genuinely excited at the slightest hint of arsenal glory!
FunGunner – I agree with you. One small aside though. Do Chelsea have any legends? The paucity of success there up until recent times means they are thin on the ground. Desailly is much more reknowed for what he did before he arrived at Chelsea and Townsend is an also ran clinging desperately the coat tails of the current crop. the fact that they have a banner dedicated to their current captain shows their utter lack of legend capital.
Fair play to Merse, he predicted on Soccer Saturday that we’d beat West Ham 7 or 8 nil last weekend. I think the man is Arsenal through and through. Honorable mention for Perry Groves as well who is constantly and unashamedly pro-Gunners on 5 Live.
Honestly as Arsenal fans I think we are perfectly well represented in the media, numerically at least. There are tons of ex-Arsenal players, and Arsenal fans in the ranks of the beeb and Sky who usually have a good word for us. Of course there are plenty who resent us for being foreign (and thus cheats), or playing pretty-pretty football (another form of cheating that can only be countered by kicking), or just not spending hundreds of millions each summer (cheating Sky out of something to talk about). And others like Adams and Wright may have their own personal reasons to resent us. It is a shame they can’t at least be neutral in public towards the club that made their careers. I think perhaps Adams tries to be neutral, as he still loves the club and would probably love to come back as coach or manager. But in the meantime he seems jealous of any success we might have without him in the set up.
‘I don’t believe that my distaste for Adams’s naivety…and his continued public utterances was too strong. In fact, I think it’s an opportunity for more debate as to whether having legendary status at the Arsenal gives you the right to unleash negativity in the form of an opinion and help fuel the more than healthy anti-Arsenalism diatribe out there.’ Well said Darius. Tony Adams, though an Arsenal legend seems to have lost respect for the team where he assumed that status.By his public utterances, he has shown us where his allegiance lies!We have no choice,just like in a war situation, to treat him like a ‘double-spy’. And here we are feeling the ‘pain’ of Henry who has gone public to say he wont be comfortable playing against Arsenal;I would’ve thought Henry’s position would be easier seeing he is a professional who is now being paid by Barca. Yet he risks his manager’s wrath to say this. That’s a true legend! The likes of Tony ought to go learn from him!
Simply put, he has joined the likes of Palmer and will henceforth be treated as such by all Arsenal fans and lovers!I told a Man Utd. fan who is a colleague in my office recently that even if we are not sure of winning the rest of our matches, we will push for the title to the last minute of the last match of the season
I find it a bit similar to certain ‘fans’ who predicted our demise start of the season or in big games, who take pleasure when the team gets beat as their opinion was proved correct. Like when we get beat we need a new world class dm, a new defence, keeper, striker etc but when we do well they begrugingly acknoweldge the team doing well.
thats how wright and at times adams come accross. like he is waiting for us to be out the title race so his point on vermaleen can be proved correct
I still like adams though but wright is not amongst my favourites anymore
Beardy my sentiments exactly, only you articulated it better.Fungunner some as hollis think its justification as it pays their bill.
Brings back the Jesus-Judas Iscariot memory to me!!!
First Lady – many of that generation got paid much less and pissed it away.
If doing punditry gives them a decent living then good for them. For all the happiness they gave us, you can’t cut them some slack to pay their bills – it seems massively disproportionate, it is their lives, not a soppy blog battle.
Maybe you should just be a little less brittle about criticism, whoever it comes from. As fans our views on our club will always be on the positive extreme. There is no guarantee former players will be just as jaundiced and it is unclear where teh rule is that says they should.
If you think that is turning their backs on the fans, maybe they would think you are too quick to turn on them. There is always something strange about people turning on former heroes for lack of loyalty, because you have to ask where theirs has gone also.
Is David Platt an arsenal legend ? Personally, I would like to shoot the bastard. Every time I see him on the TV, he makes me wince. He is one of the most miserable cretins in existence.
There is no way to censor these comments. We live in an age where some of these players, frankly, wouldn’t even have made the squad now. Such as the game is, with a faster pace and superior technique. Sure, Adams would still be a legend, but he will never be in the coaching/management department.
Unfortunately, we will have to put up with dinosaurs on Sky and the BBC for some time to come. The best thing I think is to start to listen to the new wave, like Marcotti, Balague and even Dixon.
@ Beardy
“One small aside though. Do Chelsea have any legends?”
Ha ha. Good point. NO, they don’t.
Is punditry important?
The significance to the current unique, in the modern game, Arsenal project has been the general misunderstanding of a bigger picture that has fuelled a negativity amongst the ignorant & the anti-support.
The difference between Bob Wilson & Tony Adams is that the former is a highly intelligent thinker, who can understand that the game is constantly moving on, whilst the former, who though certainly not unintelligent, has been unable to detach himself from his own time as a player.
It is very significant that the pundits are either failed coaches or those that never tried, eg Hanson.
Many are clearly stuck in their own time warp & it is sad that a majority do not seem to have an once of professionalism about what they do. Some can be entertaining but most are just plain irritating, ex Arsenal or not.
@ Muppet
Of course we cannot censor them. Nobody wants to censor them. The question is whether they OUGHT to do it – and how we as fans feel about it. I just wish they would exercise a little self-restraint. Their playing record will always stand, but they can’t have it both ways – if they continually and without justification diss the club, the manager, or the players, they cannot expect to continue to be held in high esteem by the fans. Each individual fan will have their breaking point, but we all have one.
@ arsenehollis
The “making a living” argument is no justification at all. They don’t have to be pundits, do they? And can you not understand why people feel betrayed by players whom they backed to the hilt and invested in emotionally, regardless of whether it has any observable effect on team morale?
What would your reply be to the question, why is it only ex-Arsenal players, of the players-turned-pundits, who consistently do this?
I agree with you Darius. I was quite angry at Tony Adams during his audience with the fans on Arsenal TV not long ago. He implied that he couldn’t follow Arsene Wenger’s approach and philosophy if he was manager because he is a winner. I think he is old school and could never be a good manager anywhere let alone Arsenal.
George his stint at Portsmouth proves your point. I don’t remember him winning anything with them being the winner he is.
the last time i checked, want Adams a paid Arsenal’s scout? it beggars belief that he would willingly chomp off the very handsome hand that feeds drug addiction! What made the whole episode even worse is how Ole looks at him now.
just recently mad dog Keane was punting for man United ans trongly so, while being manager of another. no diveided loyalties just encouragement to aclub that made him what he was.
Adams is a attention seeking drug sniffing has been!
Not surprising that Charlie Nicholas still loves us! I think he probably wishes he could have played in this team, though even at his peak I’m not sure he’d be good enough, but we certainly play the type of footballl that he would have liked.
I still remember the goal Adams scored in the title-winning match against Everton, with Martin Tyler commentating: “That sums it up”. What Wenger taught Adams was this: that he was not a defender, he was a footballer who defends.
Just because you used to be the captain of a successful team doesn’t mean you go on to make a good manager. A great leader on the pitch isn’t necessarily a good manager. Who would have thought that a “fancy dan” like George Graham would turn out to be a great manager of his time?
The same goes for punditry. Professional footballers are “professional”. They play for a team because it pays their wages. AW’s youth development, having a group of players growing up together to love the team, has not been the rule over the years, and has developed from the necessity to build a new stadium, manage wages and transfer fees, and still be relatively successful. Few managers could have done that.
Anyway these pundits would be managing teams if they were that good.
The bonus is that this team is still in the running for the top prizes, after so many setbacks this season. Whether they win them or not, they have already vindicated AW’s leadership.
Another feature of Wenger’s time is the way that someone would step up in a crisis, whether it was Alex Manninger, or maybe Llungberg after Pires’ injury. Now Bendtner, Denilson and Eboue (in particular, but not exclusively) seem to be stepping up. It gives me hope for the remaining games.
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