Guest Blogger Assured Of The Future - Patrick

Guest blog for SgGooner? I would have never thought so myself. The last time I wrote an essay was yonks ago. And it all began with a 'fluke' conversation. But what the heck, it's nice to help someone out. Especially so when you are helping someone nice.

I started supporting Arsenal many many years ago. In fact, the match that made me a Gooner was the exact antithesis of the debacle of the match against manure utd that is now but a long distant away. That match was against the same team in the same tournament but the outcome of the match was so different. 5 goals were scored in that match with the last 2 goals scored during the last 3 minutes of the match (hey, let's make which match I'm blabbing about as a trivia question to all you Gooners out there).

Now, let's change our focus to the future of Arsenal. In the years that I've been a Gooner, I've never felt so confident about the future of the Club as I am now. I dare say that all the things that led me to such a confident assessment is due to none other than Le Prof. He has been instrumental to the way we are now (I shall leave the debate on whether DD did play a big part too to another discussion although there's no doubt at all that it was DD that brought Le Prof to THOF).

The first transformation was the players. There is a certain quality about the players that Le Prof brings into the Club. If you look at the players that are in the Club now, they are blessed with incredibly good ball control skills. Whether they are tall and lanky (Adebayor and Kanu), small in size – relatively to the other players (Cesc and Overmars) or your average size players (Bergkamp and Henry), they have incredibly great skills. Not the usual hoof it up and whack as hard as you can type of players.

Besides the 'skill' that has been brought into the Club, these players instil a type of player discipline that the English players lack. The type of discipline a sportsman should have – cut down on alcohol (flashback to the downing of beers in celebration by Merse after we have won the FA Cup or was it the League Cup final against Sheffield Wed back in 1993), no late nights (lots of rest), gym/weight training on their own during the rest period. These were the testament of Dixon and Keown who felt inspired by players such as Vieira and Bergkamp (although it wasn't Wenger who brought him into the Club).

Revolutionary training method that the players rave about. This, in conjunction with the players diet has prolonged the career of many of our older players. Who would have thought that players such as Bergkamp, Adams and Keown can still play at the very top way into their 30s.

The Training Centre, which Monsieur Wenger was a key figure in its development, boasts the best playing surfaces in the country. With all the pitches built to the exact specification as that at The Emirates. Wenger and his team decided on almost the entire contents and layout of the Centre. From its pitches down to the treatment room, fitness room and even the massage baths. And we all know that preparing well is a main component to winning matches.

What about The Emirates. Many of you have had the good fortune of visiting The Emirates would know what I'm talking about. The Emirates is much bigger and have far better facilities than what Highbury used to be. I know many of you out there are still sentimental about Highbury but we have to look forward. Wenger was the main 'architect' for The Emirates. Again, his vision was incorporated into the stadium. And with the recent financial report that was published, Arsenal is now the top 5 Clubs in income generation. Without The Emirates, we would have never been able to be up there financially and you know in today's footballing world, if you don't have the money, you are not going to make it.

From what has been said so far, it seems to be the case that if Wenger leaves the Club (Heaven forbids but in reality, we will see him leave the Club one day - praying that'll be the day he retires from football), we'll be doomed. Far from it, I say (remember, I said I've never been so confident about our future before).

Why? The answer is Wenger again.

The Boss has been leaving a legacy at the Club since Day 1. The fruits of his labour – The Training Centre, the stadium, his revolutionary training method and the talent that he's brought in are good enough foundation for us to build on. Granted, the next manager (I hope that Wenger will remain as manager for a long time more to come) may not have Wenger's people skill but with such a good foundation and with Arsenal's reputation, I'm sure we will be able to bring in a decent manager to ensure that the legacy continues... and most importantly, the network of scouts.

And finally, introducing the future of my Arsenal. My 3 kids – Avigail Frances Chan (AFC1), Aidan Fabian Chan (AFC2) and Alexander Francis Chan (AFC3).



The future sure looks good...