ENGLISH PREMEIR LEAGUE Arsenal v Swansea City:ARSENE WENGER joked that hell would hold no fear for him, after the summer that he has endured, and that he has sufficient behind-the-scenes intrigue to write a best-selling book. But the Arsenal manager is in the mood to look forward, and he hopes that his business at the end of the transfer window has belatedly offered reassurance to the players who had begun to question the club's direction.
Wenger described the summer as the most “disturbed” of his 15 years in north London, which still felt like an understatement given the destabilising transfer sagas involving Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, the difficulties in signing new players at competitive prices, the injuries and the fixtures that his team have faced.
The Champions League play-off against Udinese, he said, was “the game of the season”, while the 8-2 defeat against Manchester United at Old Trafford was a “humiliation” and had the potential to damage his young players.
Yet Wenger went further when he suggested that members of his squad were losing faith in the club. The Frenchman has to hope that the five signings he made before the deadline can have the required restorative effect. Per Mertesacker and Mikel Arteta are expected to start against Swansea today, with Yossi Benayoun on the substitutes’ bench. Andre Santos lacks match fitness and Park Chu-Young’s work permit may not be processed in time. “They could be a little worried about our ambition because they see big players moving out and big players not coming in,” Wenger said. “When you are a big player, the confidence you gain is as well when you look and see who is around you.
“There was maybe more uncertainty, from the players who were here, about our potential and our determination to strengthen the squad. But we did not master the timing (of the transfer business). I could write a book about the summer and it would be quite an interesting one. Not because of me but because of all that happened. It was quite unbelievable. You would see that it was not as easy as it can look from outside.
“I am not the only one who controls things. It’s the clubs who buy and the players as well . . . there is the determination of the players, because they change their minds, sometimes, as well. In my job, you expect to suffer. That’s why when I go to hell one day, it will be less painful for me than for you because I am used to suffering.”
Wenger said Jack Wilshere would be out for a minimum of two months with his ankle injury and he suggested that a more experienced player might have sought treatment immediately, rather than going on holiday. “He went on holiday . . . when you were 19 and you felt a kick somewhere, you think when you come back, it will be all right,” Wenger said. “The best I count is two months but it can also be more.”
Guardian Service
