So Paddy Got Up - an Arsenal anthology (20 page)

A strong balance sheet might be praiseworthy, but it should not be the club’s primary objective, as even Hill-Wood admitted, “Our business goal is not to generate profits as such, but rather to grow the club’s revenues, so that they can be re-invested in the team and the long-term success of the club”. This begs the obvious question as to why has Wenger been so reluctant to spend? There is no doubt that the move to the new stadium limited the transfer budget over the past few years, but the financial situation has greatly improved and it is clear that funds are available to buy the players that the team needs. However, there is still a suspicion that the manager would prefer to build rather than buy, so much of the low spending seems to be out of choice. Indeed, Gazidis clarified the club’s stance last year, “We believe transfer spending is the last resort. That’s a sensible view to have. Re-signing players is a far more efficient system”.

Wenger is clearly singing from the same song sheet, as he has reiterated his preference for developing young players to dipping into the transfer market, “If I go out and buy players, then Jack Wilshere doesn’t come through”. He gave a further insight into his thoughts, when he argued, “The job of a manager is not to spend as much money as possible.”

That was then, this is now.

This summer, it became abundantly clear that the side needed strengthening in order to add some experience and steel to the young talents already there, especially after the high-profile departures of Fabregas and Nasri, hence the “supermarket sweep” on transfer deadline day. There were even rumours about huge bids for the likes of Eden Hazard, Yann M’Vila and Mario Götze, so it looks like the strategy might be beginning to change. Arsenal had hoped that their prudent approach would be rewarded by the imminent arrival of UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations, which aim to force clubs to live within their means. In theory, this should mean that the age of the big spender will be drawing to an end, which would benefit clubs like Arsenal who will have no problem complying with the new rules. However, although many clubs have cut back on their spending, the law of unintended consequences might also apply. Specifically, some clubs seem to have opted to improve profitability by increasing their revenue through a plethora of new sponsorship deals, rather than reducing transfers and wages. This may be only a temporary phenomenon, but it’s no longer a slam-dunk that Arsenal’s approach will flourish under FFP.

This might explain the seeming about-turn this transfer window, when Arsenal finally splashed the cash, though it might also be due to new owner Stan Kroenke exerting some influence, as he will surely want to be associated with a winning club. Even though he is one of the wealthiest men on the planet, he gives every sign of being a careful investor. Ideally, he would be in no hurry for major change, but the situation was becoming desperate after a very shaky start to the season, including the 8-2 humiliation at the hands of Manchester United. You have to believe that Kroenke encouraged Arsène into acting more decisively when pursuing new players.

One great opportunity for the American to make an immediate impact would be to pay off the club’s debt early in order to reduce the annual interest costs and free up money saved for improving the squad. Frankly, given Kroenke’s praise for Arsenal’s self-sustaining model, this does not seem too likely, but other club owners have been known to go down this path. Another way of looking at our strategy is to ask whether we can afford not to spend, especially as others seem happy to buy their way to success. The traditional “Sky Four” has been gate crashed by the extremely wealthy Manchester City and the big-spending Tottenham, so Arsenal can no longer take it for granted that they will secure the lucrative Champions League qualification.

Not only did the collapse towards the end of last season prove disappointing to us fans, but it also hurt Arsenal’s bank balance. The impact of dropping from second to fourth place meant that the Premier League merit payment was lower, but the damage did not stop there, as it also reduces the distribution from the following season’s Champions League, which partly depends on that finishing position. In other words, a little more effort on the pitch would have brought higher financial rewards, which might just have avoided the need to raise ticket prices. Consider that for a moment.

Furthermore, it is evident that sponsors like to be associated with winners, so this should also be a consideration when it comes to deciding how much to spend on buying new players. That ignores the increase in shirt sales and other merchandising that normally results from a club having a world-class player or two on its books.

In summary, our finances are in a somewhat strange position at the moment. Yes, our commercial income is much lower than it should be for a club like ours, but we still enjoy the fifth highest revenue in Europe (excluding any money from property sales), so we are hardly standing in line for the poor house. What is needed, in my humble opinion, is a more sophisticated use of those resources. That means spending less on under-performing squad players to free up funds for those experienced, world class individuals that can make a significant difference. There were encouraging signs of this happening this summer, so fingers crossed that the lessons of the past few unsuccessful seasons have been taken on board. Then, in three years time, the cavalry should arrive in the form of thumping great new commercial deals.

Whatever happens, Arsenal will be my team through all the highs and lows. My hair is a lot greyer than those days when I stood on the North Bank as a teenager, but the emotions remain unchanged. Every defeat still hurts, every victory still puts a smile on my face for the rest of the weekend. There’s little doubt that football has become big business, but when I think about Arsenal, my first thoughts are not for the balance sheet, but the glorious sporting moments, many of which I now have to enjoy through the wonders of cable television, as I’ve lived abroad for 25 years. Like the evening I spent in Milan watching Michael Thomas’ “It’s up for grabs now” moment, when I set the Italian record for the highest jump from a sitting position; or the afternoon in Zürich when Tony Adams sealed the title with that goal.

In short, football finances are important, but let’s not forget that it’s just a means to an end and it’s the football that makes it the beautiful game.

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Kieron O’Connor writes The Swiss Ramble, a blog focusing on the business of football. He used to stand on the North Bank, but now watches Arsenal from Switzerland via the wonders of satellite TV.

18 – SUPPORTING ARSENAL FROM AFAR - Leanne Hurley

When it comes to being a ‘far-flung’ Arsenal supporter I’m luckier than most in that I’m not actually that far flung.  Living in Belfast means I am only a few hours via plane, train, and automobile from the Emirates (something many would give their left one, and that of someone close to them).

Growing up in Northern Ireland I was introduced to football by my grandfather at the age of four.  The choice of football back then was Irish League, while English football wasn’t anything more than Man United or Liverpool, with a televised match once a week. Easter and New Year were a veritable football fest when we might have been spoiled with two, maybe even three, matches.

I didn’t know much about football then. I was quite possibly the only female who went to matches in Northern Ireland, but I knew I didn’t want to support either United or Liverpool. Some would point to my contrary nature but I prefer to believe that some are just born with sense. When it came to footballing matters I knew, even at a young age, those teams weren’t the ones for me.  So, with a father who was a rugby fan, a grandfather who had no interest outside the Irish League, and little or no football coverage beyond United and Liverpool, I got on with supporting a bunch of Irish league part-timers playing hoofball on a rectangle of mud.

It wasn’t until 1987 (when I was 11), that Arsenal finally made their way into my heart; a place they would come to own, fill with joy and tear apart with no regard for my feelings or my life away from football.  It was a school trip to Germany, a round trip of some 1800 miles by coach with an overnight stop in London on the way home. For some reason the school booked a trip around Highbury and from the moment the coach pulled up outside that magnificent stadium on Avenell Road I was hooked.

It has only been in recent years I have been able to afford to go and see Arsenal play; usually against the Blackburns and Sunderlands of this world as they are the matches it is easier to get tickets for. In these financially tough times, I don’t get to as many matches as I used to or would like. I never got to see Arsenal play at Highbury, yet the stadium feels as important to me as it does to any other Gooner. I was lucky enough to have had one opportunity to walk on (well, near) the hallowed turf at the Highbury, as well as see some of the players on the pitch as they posed for photographs with the Littlewoods Cup.  If I’d had a bit more of a clue back then I’d have paid more attention, but as it was, I was just so blown away by the surroundings and Highbury itself that I paid only a fleeting glance to the players (I think it was David O’Leary and someone else).

Following Arsenal while not being able to get to games regularly has not been easy, but I know I’m fortunate in that I‘ve actually been able to see the love of my life in the flesh.  Many others aren’t so lucky and I know this it is a bone of contention with some fans, who believe you should truly only support your local team. That’s a view I simply do not ascribe to, not because I don’t live near Arsenal, but because if not for the international fans we would be a much poorer club. And I don’t just mean financially.

Supporting from afar is not always easy; there can be a sense of isolation –somewhat helped by the arrival of social media sites such as Twitter.  Whereas before the only real choices were to watch at home with as many friends as you could squeeze into your house (if you were fortunate enough to have friends who wanted to watch Arsenal), or head to your local pub (not always practical due to location or religious beliefs), now you can watch with thousands of other ‘virtual’ Gooners online. While it might not give the same buzz as being surrounded by a sixty thousand actual Arsenal fans, it has fostered a sense of community and offered a space to show that we are not alone in our footballing madness. Now, you can have instant reaction from fans around the world, you can view and respond to the opinions of others, engage in debate; and while Twitter will never replace the feeling of actually being at the Emirates, it does afford Gooners the chance to share their joy, pain and disbelief at what they are watching in a way that few ever imagined.

If the worst thing about being a far flung Gooner is not being able to get to games, or see their heroes in the flesh, the best thing is feeling part of the global Gooner community, something quite impossible pre-Internet. There are plenty of other benefits too, such as fewer Spurs fans, not having to read The Sun, and it never being too warm at 4am to wear an Arsenal scarf.  A common complaint heard by far flung supporters is abuse for not being ‘real’ fans as they don’t live in N5, but thankfully that tends to come from a vocal minority and is not reflective of how most Gooners who live near Arsenal feel. Should we really let something as arbitrary as where a person was born, or where they live, dictate who is a real fan and who is not? 

Sometimes arguments ensue between those who go every week and those who can’t, and valid points are raised, all the while missing the obvious. It isn’t the amount you spend that makes you a ‘proper’ fan; it’s the amount it takes out of you.

We all want the same for Arsenal, that is, success on the pitch. How the club go about achieving that will always divide fans. Some want to spend, some want to promote from within, some want to trust that the manager might know better than the rest of us. Some want to see pretty football, some want to win at all costs. Others think that if only we’d signed player X from club Y we would be doing better, while others believe if we hadn’t signed player A from club B we’d be doing even better. It’s complicated, like life, but it is just football.

There are many around the world who will never get to experience being at an Arsenal game first-hand, yet these people still support the club, our club, their club, because that’s what supporters do. We shouldn’t care about distances or regular attendance; we should care about the quality of support. We have some of the greatest fans in the world, spread right across the globe, and we are lucky to have them. The dedication of Arsenal fans across the globe is really something all Arsenal fans should be proud of. There isn’t a time zone we don’t occupy, a continent we don’t claim as our own, or a time considered too ridiculous to get up and watch The Arsenal.

Living far from the Emirates does not exclude you from being a fan and as Arsenal’s tour of the Far East in the summer of 2011 proved, some of our most passionate fans live far and wide. Witness the Chinese fans with their magnificent banner: Barce pay £40m take Cesc away or go home to wank [sic]. They take every crumb that falls their way and they are grateful for it.  Football is now a global industry with all clubs making more and more of an effort to include those fans who do not live on their doorsteps. We all hold close our memories of our favourite Arsenal goal; the player we longed to see in the flesh but never got the opportunity; the matches we wished we could have been there for; for those fortunate to witness them in person the memory might be different, but the events are the same for those watching from afar. We remember where we were when Henry blasted past Barthez, or when Bergkamp spun the Newcastle defence, to score what is regarded as Arsenal’s best goal of all time. We wear our shirts with pride and we defend our club as if it was a member of our own family because, well, it is.

Arsenal are in all of our hearts no matter how we came to start supporting the team. We feel the pain and humiliation of a bad defeat just as deeply as those who were there, perhaps even more so, because we know that we missed the chance to be there to cheer the players on. In troubled times such as this, the demon year of 2011, we feel further from our club because we feel helpless. We want to be there, to lift the spirits, to support: isn’t that what ‘supporters’ do?