Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has lost support of board after embarrassing Manchester City defeats
Chief executive Ivan Gazidis, along with fellow directors Sir Chips Keswick and Lord Harris of Peckham, no longer believe their legendary boss is the right man to lead the club
ARSENE WENGER has lost the support of Arsenal’s board after their crushing defeats by Manchester City.
Chief executive Ivan Gazidis, along with fellow directors Sir Chips Keswick and Lord Harris of Peckham, no longer believe their legendary boss is the right man to lead the club.
Majority shareholder Stan Kroenke has made it clear he will have the final say on Wenger’s future.
But Gazidis is already masterminding the huge restructuring process that is going on behind the scenes as the Gunners prepare for 68-year-old Wenger’s departure.
Arsenal were beaten 3-0 by City in the Carabao Cup final last Sunday and lost by the same scoreline at the Emirates on Thursday night.
They are sixth in the Premier League — 30 points behind leaders City after losing nine times already this season.
Wenger, in charge of the Gunners for 21 years, signed a new two-year deal last summer.
But he has now failed to win the title since 2004.
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And Arsenal are staring at the prospect of another season without Champions League football, as they currently lie ten points adrift of fourth place.
Their only hope of silverware, and a backdoor route to next season’s Champions League, is an outside chance of winning the Europa League.
They face AC Milan in the last 16, with the first leg in Italy next Thursday.
And Wenger is ready to prioritise Europa League glory by resting a number of his star players for tomorrow’s tricky trip to in-form Brighton.
Striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang admitted a top-four Premier League finish is virtually beyond his new team.
He said: “The Europa League is a good option to qualify for the Champions League because our route in the Premier League is not easy.
“There are some players who are maybe resigned.
“There is a lot of disappointment in the club and we are not happy with our displays against Manchester City either on Thursday or last Sunday.”
But defiant Wenger still declared: “I am always ready for a fight. I have experienced these problems before.”