Identity Crisis?

In a single statement Robin van Persie has launched large sections, if not all, of the Arsenal support into an identity crisis. Where has our football gone? Ironically, a player famed for learning his trade on the streets, has called into question the very concept behind the so-called "joy of the game." It is not uncommon to read posts from Gooners around the world decrying van Persie's statement and announcing the end of the game as we know it. It is a personal blow, because unlike many recent Arsenal exports, van Persie was believed to be "one of us." He is the last player from the era of the Invincibles. No, he wasn't one of them, he was brought in directly after that achievement, and remained one of the few at the club since with the technical quality and innate footballing bravura to play alongside some of those greats.

Initially I was gutted by the announcement on van Persie's official site. I have been an admirer of this player more than any other since the Invincibles, and given my worship of Bergkamp, Robin is a natural choice as his successor. He has scored some amazing goals, is capable of jaw-dropping close control [a certain pre-season goal against Inter Milan comes to mind], and this past season has demonstrated an uncanny ability to find space in crowded penalty areas and appear unmarked despite the whole world knowing how much we relied upon him as our primary [and at times singular] goal threat. On top of all this he regularly speaks with intelligence and enthusiasm about the game and particularly the attacking, technical, pass and move style espoused by Wenger throughout his Arsenal reign.

My personal points of contention with van Persie's statement are that he made it without the club's knowledge, and that it is in marked contrast to the bulk of his public comments about the "Arsenal Way" and Arsene Wenger's footballing philosophy. The first could be explained a couple of ways. The statement could have been released without the player's full knowledge. I find that unlikely. Or it could have been an act of brinkmanship, a tactic not unknown to the club itself, and recently used by Wayne Rooney, as suggested by Sky Sports [then later taken down]. This seems more likely, as he has made such proclamations regarding ambition before. And of course the most obvious reason is that he clearly wants out and will do whatever he has to do to force the issue, irrespective of the certain backlash from Gooners everywhere.

I maintain that it was never likely that one meeting would be enough to settle a new contract. But I think the wording and tone of RvP's statement are unfortunate in the least, despicable at worst.Perhaps it is forgivable if the intent is to inspire some kind of action by the board in terms of player signings. That is a bit misguided though, given the very transparent strategy in place while stadium debt is addressed and commercial deals restrict our bottom line. It's no secret that we have had to build our team differently. We have consistently maintained that we would rely upon youth and act conservatively with regards to bringing in new players. As well it's not too clever for any one player to feel they have that level of influence on how the club is run, particularly one who hasn't been available for a large chunk of his Arsenal career and who has directly profited from that very strategy. After all, Henry left with Wenger's blessing so as not to 'kill' the likes of van Persie and Adebayor.

The most damning aspect of this shift in van Persie's 'ambition,' and the cause for such vitriol from supporters, is that he has come to it at the same time as he has apparently overcome his injury knack. Few outfield players have logged as many league minutes as the Dutchman has in the past 18 months of football, and he has done so while maintaining his scoring form and remaining among the best chance-creators to boot. You never had to worry about him leaving previously because of his history on the treatment table. But magically, now that he has only a year left on his contract, he has for the second time posted more than 40 games in a season and is in scintillating form. You want to know the other time he played more than 40 games in a season? In 2008-09 when he scored 20, set up 13, carried us through large chunks of the season, and yup, you guessed it, was about to reach his final contract year.

It could be coincidence that both times he has recently faced the opportunity to put himself in the window he has suddenly developed the ability to resist injury and string together a bunch of games. The last time he apparently only spoke to Arsenal about new contract terms, but spoke much more positively about reaching a new agreement. This time is different. It has been suggested to me that he really could be trying with Arsenal's best interests in mind to force the board's hand with his public statement, and even that he is doing so with Wenger's knowledge. It's an intriguing thought, that the boss and the player could be working together stealthily using such drastic measures. But as much as van Persie's about face on the Arsenal Way is inconsistent with his previous proclamations, I doubt Wenger would operate in such a covert way. The manager does make some baffling statements at times that contradict reality [I didn't see it, these players have amazing mental strength, etc] but I'm not convinced he would go to such lengths.

While it rankled enormously last summer when Cesc and Nasri both left, the greater irritation was the manner in which it happened---leaving it to the end of summer, rushing the replacements, etc. This summer we seem to have corrected that course, and as Grimandi would have us believe, have already brought in the player to take van Persie's spot. My problem with that, with no disrespect to Giroud, is that he is far from a like-for-like player. Wenger's statement about the French striker was eerily similar to the one he made about Chamakh when he arrived, so presumably the boss sees him more as a foil to RvP rather than his successor. Perhaps Podolski is truly meant to fill the central spot, and given our long-time links with him his arrival would mean Wenger has been concerned for some time that our captain has one foot out the door. Looking back over his comments about Manchester City having too many strikers back in October, there just may be some fire behind that smoke.

So for the identity crisis, where does this all leave us? Best case for me personally, we keep van Persie, he stays fit, bangs in goals, makes good with the support, helps us win things, and retires a Gunner. I realize that is optimistic bordering on insanity. Worst case, he goes to City and becomes the final piece to their Europe-conquering puzzle. If he does this I will see him in a similar light to Sol Campbell, who left his former club in a twatty way, played very well for us for a number of years, then left us in a twatty way. I don't hate Sol now, nor do I discount what he did and how he played when he was with us. I suppose the exception there is that Sol seemed to be on the decline and with Robin we just don't know. I get the sense he does have at least a few very good years in front of him. But we will have to wait and see just what happens. Looking at the subtext however I see some real positives, some relating to him, some merely coincidental.

If Podolski does assume the central role then we must accept that as we have been after him for some time now, Wenger equally long ago expected RvP to leave and took steps well in advance to replace him. He then put a muzzle on the departing Captain during Euro while he lined up the plan B option in Giroud. This is a sea change from what we saw last summer with Fabregas and Nasri. Wenger has also been accumulating players in the middle of their careers, more in-line with his initial transfer strategy when he arrived at the club, so we now have a more complete range of maturity and experience levels. Whatever Alex Ferguson was able to achieve with his Golden Generation in the mid-90's, he also had some older, more mature heads in the mix that helped bed in those youngsters. We have lacked that in recent years out of the need to cash in on the Invincibles as we broke down that side, but now we have a strong core of players like Koscielny, Sagna, Arteta, Song, Vermaelen, and Mertesacker who can guide a crop of very young, very promising players in  Szczesny, AOC, Wilshere, Miyaichi, Gibbs and Coquelin.

Add to that, we have secured two very exciting players [also of the mid-career variety] very early despite a European Championship complicating transfers, we have a new first team coaching staff, and one of the best managers in the league. If van Persie does leave, he takes with him the last association with our post-Invincible trophyless squad and marks the birth of Wenger's fourth side. In this way, losing our identity is no bad thing. We are entering the last two years of our financially restraining commercial deals and remain in a very select minority of sides that has maintained Champions League football for the last 15 years. I don't for a second believe that Financial Fair Play will have the impact that Gazidis projects, but I also don't think that will matter as much to us as some may think. It seems the wage structure is under reconstruction, and with the shift in transfer policy over the last year, I have reason to hope that we will be closer to the model of Wenger's early years, which can only be a good thing for our competitiveness in the seasons to come.


Follow @11cannons