Don’t get me wrong, I hate to see us lose. A defeat on the weekend will keep me feeling low ‘til at least Tuesday lunchtime. But I’ve come to see that two things irritate me far worse

By: Nathan Church

Off the bat, I’m going to write something controversial… I’m a 3rd generation Arsenal fan, and I don’t give a damn whether we win a ‘trophy’ or not. What I do care about, is that Arsenal remains a team I can be proud of, playing technical and stylish football that is a pleasure to watch, as well as consolidating itself as a successful organisation.

Don’t get me wrong, I hate to see us lose. A defeat on the weekend will keep me feeling low ‘til at least Tuesday lunchtime. But I’ve come to see that two things irritate me far worse. The first are Arsenal players who don’t respect the club. Here I point to Reyes, Diarra and, of course, Lehmann. These three – immature, petulant, and just plain bonkers – have done much to damage our club. In better circumstances, Reyes could have fully realized his potential as an attacking winger, and if Diarra had even the slightest bit of patience, he may well have been starting this weekend in the absence of Flamini, a true professional.

My second irritation is with Arsenal supporters, who don’t actually support. It pains me no end to read and hear the comments of some so-called fans, who basically want the Gunners to become another Chelsea, bludgeoning the transfer market with millions of pounds for ‘proven’ stars (I still get a wry smirk thinking of Sheva…) and playing mind-numbingly dull football. I totally agree with the idea that the squad must evolve; selling Henry and bringing in Eduardo was a great example of this. But these transfers must be measured. We definitely need to deepen our squad, but spending 70 million plus on a raft of names will surely act to destabilize the team. This would require us to either rotate starters (because Liverpool play such awesome football…) or else have talent unhappily parked on the bench (beware the Chelsea implosion). Think of the core of the team: Fabregas, Flamini, Hleb Clichy, Toure, Adebayor. These, I believe, best embody the players who are prepared to fight for the manager and fight for the club – and cost relatively little on the transfer market.

I am excited about the future of Arsenal. Losing Lehmann will not be a tragedy, while I also feel that it may be time to sell on Eboue and possibly Gilberto. Coming into the squad will be the players currently on loan in Spain (Vela and Merida) while there are others one can look to that also compliment the Arsenal style of football – Diego, Ben Arfa Nasri, Gourcuff. Yet arguably more priority should be given to strengthening the defence, giving cover to the wide backs and bolstering the central defenders. Here Djourou has been disappointing, and Senderos (while a high-quality player) can at times be inconsistent.

So just remember that if you call yourself a Gooner, try to act like one! Understand that you can’t control things in football, and automatically win every trophy just by spending money. For all Chelsea’s overdraft wealth they have been in the same boat as us, in failing to win the Champions League – in fact we’ve done more in making the final! And in terms of Ronaldo United, I give credit where credit’s due. Yet I can’t help wondering how things would be if Martin Taylor had mutilated Rooney or Tevez’s leg instead of Eduardo, or even speculate whether Ronaldo will go the way of Ronaldinho. Still, when all is said and done, I don’t go to bed stressing about why Torres went to Anfield and not the Emirates, and calling for Wenger to spend, spend, spend. People like that don’t have the bollocks to come out and call for his sacking because they fear the question, “and replace him with WHO??”. Yes there will be errors of judgment, and yes, they will break your heart at least once a season – but that’s football so quit the whining please! Even the invincibles couldn’t do the treble!! Or if you love to moan that much go and support Derby – at least they have plenty to complain about…

There’s a reason only four clubs have won the premier league since 1992 – you need style and luck – in bucketfuls. What I rest assured in is that Arsenal can beat ANY team – anywhere, on any given day. We have the style, we just need the luck…