Filed under: Arsenal, Carling Cup, Champions League, FA Cup, Football, Team Reviews
ARSENALFinished: 4th
FA Cup: lost 6th round
Carling Cup: Runners-up
Champions League: lost, Round of 16
The highlight: The big prizes once again eluded Arsene Wenger's side but for a few brief moments they felt like kings of Europe after recovering to beat Barcelona in the first leg of the Champions League last 16 tie. Unfortunately, the feeling was never going to last.
The lowlight: The seconds were ticking down and extra time looming in the Carling Cup final when Laurent Koscielny and Wojciech Szczesny gifted Birmingham's Obafemi Martins a winning goal. Ouch.
Arsenal 2010-11 Season Match Log: Previews, Live Commentaries and Reports
The lowdown: Familiar doubts surfaced when Wenger adopted his usual safety-first approach to the summer transfer market and offered reassurance the arrival of Sebastien Squillaci and Laurent Koscielny would plug the gaps left by the departure of four centre backs.
No need to up the £2 million bid for Fulham keeper Mark Schwarzer, nor bring in another striker alongside Marouane Chamakh to deputise for the injured Robin van Persie.
For a while during the second half of the season it looked as though Wenger might be proved right. But only for a while. Ultimately, the manager's faith in the quality and depth of his squad was shown to be misplaced and the season ended with a widening rift between the Frenchman and a sizeable chunk of the club's supporters.
An early home defeat to West Brom was a clear warning this Arsenal side was capable of conceding too many soft goals and was the first significant dent in a home record that eventually meant the Gunners couldn't sustain a title challenge.
Even so, they were top in early December and in contention for all four major trophies until the morale-sapping defeat in the Carling Cup final, the game that was supposed to provide a trouble-free passage back to trophy winning success.
Wenger's side never recovered from the loss to Birmingham and with the team's good form at the turn of the year having convinced the manager no major changes were required - even though Thomas Vermaelen's achilles injury was known to be far worse than first feared - the season collapsed.
In the space of two weeks they lost at Wembley, exited the Champions League to Barcelona and were beaten in the FA Cup sixth round by Manchester United. And in the middle of all that a scoreless home draw with Sunderland confirmed they weren't title material.
A fourth-placed finish means the club must negotiate a Champions League qualifying round if it is to reach the group stages of the competition but Wenger's faces other tests this summer. The manager must bring in new faces if he is to win back hearts and minds and with a new owner - Stan Kroenke at the helm - the transfer market will provide the first indication of the future direction of the club.
Three pros:
Jack Wilshere - the finest young English midfielder in years.
Johan Djourou - matured rapidly after returning from long-term injury
Samir Nasri - would have been player of the season had voting taken place in January
Three cons:
Cesc Fabregas's decision to go to the Spanish grand prix instead of watch the final game of the season. A sign of things to come?
Sebastien Squillaci - not up to the job and typified cut-price approach to transfers
The rift between Wenger and supporters - time to keep the faith
By the numbers:
2 - number of players who reached double figures of league goals. Robin van Persie (18) and Samir Nasri (10).
4 - the number of home league defeats.
9.7 - Transfer fee (£ million) paid to Lorient for Koscielny. How much?
31 - combined number of substitute appearances by Andrei Arshavin and Tomas Rosicky. Senior players who don't lead from the front.
45 - appearances by Wilshere. No wonder Wenger is concerned about burn-out.
£731 million - the valuation given to the club by the Kroenke takeover
By our numbers:
Manager's job: 6
Entertainment: 8
Team spirit: 7
Fans' satisfaction: 4
Overall campaign: 6
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Source: http://www.fanhouse.co.uk/2011/05/29/arsenal-end-of-season-report-arsene-wengers-transfer-failings/
Bill Haas Bo Van Pelt Bubba Watson Camilo Villegas Carlos Puyol
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