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Walking past the clock towerMy parents were both born and raised in North London (well actually my mums birth actually took

place in Leicestershire due to evacuation in the war, but thats another story). At different points

along Green Lanes they lived, and met in a coffee bar somewhere near Finsbury Park, so the legend

goes.

My dad and brother werent much into football but had a passing interest in seeing Spurs do well. I

looked at the dreary white and navy (or sometimes then pale blue) of their kit and wasnt too

impressed. The geographically closer fire-red of Arsenal, with the bloody great canon, looked much

more interesting. Visiting family who lived right near White Hart Lane, I was stunned by how drab,

dangerous and generally unpleasant the area seemed.

Then, a few weeks later, we were playing on Highbury Fields. My dad mentioned that Arsenal

stadium was nearby and was a very impressive building, with marble and art deco architecture, and I

asked if we could go look. We walked out the top end of Highbury Fields, past the clock tower, and

back down to the stadium.

Its a nice place. Ever since, coming out of the tube on match days, Ive been struck by how much

more of a family atmosphere, how much more friendly, how much more civilisedthe area around

Arsenal is, compared to the north of Tottenham. I chose at that moment, aged only about five, that I

would support Arsenal. The clock to this day, remains a piece of inspiration to me, and Im still not

sure why.

Pretty much the first thing I remember Arsne Wenger doing when he arrived at Arsenal, was selling

Ian Wright to West Ham. Like much of the world, I had my head in my hands, thinking, What is he

doing? but it turned out to not be a bad move, albeit maybe slightly premature.

Soon, some others left. Overmars, Petit to name two. Players I really liked. Mind you, you nevermuch heard of them again once they left, no-one seemed to get as much out of them as Arsenal did.

Over the coming years, this pattern continued, most notably when Thierry Henry took what I believe

is the most regretted decision of his life and left. Since then, he has been a pale shadow of his

former self in playing terms.

Arguably, one can say that the same is true of Fabregas. It definitely is of Clichy, of Nasri (who

languishes on the bench most of the time), and most of the others whove left over recent years.

Weve by and large wanted to keep them, but by and large, theyve run to where the money is that

speaks volumes about their character and says much about ours. Im proud of that. Possibly the

best example is Ashley Cole. He plays about as well at Chelsea as he did at Arsenal but gets more

money, simple as that. He has no sense of commitment, and would play for the mafia if they paid

him enough money. His off-pitch antics attest to his lack of moral fibre.

It didnt matter in the early days, because we were still winning trophies and were neck and neck

with Manchester United, and a good way ahead of the nearest of the chasing pack. I cant fault

Arsne Wenger for anyof those decisions to let players go ifsomeone doesnt want to be

somewhere, they arent going to play at their best, so what is the point of keeping them? Its like a

bad relationship let it go, move on, find something better. However, thats where I can and do

fault Arsne Wenger. We havent found something better.

The number of duff signings he has made is worrying. Davor Suker, Chamakh, Gervinho are

examples that sit readily at the front of my mind. And the recent fiasco over nearly losing Walcott

amplifies this point. As a team, right now, I think Arsenal are good: Podolski, Giroud and Santi

Cazorla are proving to be brilliant additions to a strong spine of Walcott, Wilshire, Ramsey, Sagnaand Szczesny.

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However, a while back when we werent scoring much, a disgruntled Argentine called Tevez was

knocking around, ripe for the picking. He isnt what Id design for an Arsenal player, but he is strong,

and buys a reliable 20 goals per season (when he is actually on the pitch not the bench). We could

probably have got him for almost no money, and would have made that back in TV fees from being

in more competitions for longer. Hell we might well actually have won something.

There are lots of examples like this.

The situation is now critical. Arsne Wenger is an intelligent man. However, nobodyin life has a

monopoly on good ideas and sometimes we all need to listen. There is (with the exception of Sir

Alex Fergusson) no other manager in the world as trusted and reviled as Wenger. But because of his

arrogance and stubbornness, he now finds himself in the last chance saloon, and the bell has just

gone for last orders. He faces two choices: Either carry on regardless and end up being forced out

almost in disgrace, or start listening, compromise, bring in some big money, high-profile signings and

start winning things, even if it does upset the books for a season or two.

If he doesnt choose option two, he will lose the fans and once you lose the fans the dressing room is

sure to follow. So, Mr. Wenger, whats it to be?