Mes: octubre 2022

It is almost universally accepted that they play the most expansive and attractive brand of football in the English Premier League. Yet, they have now gone five years without winning a single trophy – that despite the promise from manager Arsene Wenger that his team were ready to win a major trophy last season. The faithful fans await that day when there will be an addition to the Gunners’ trophy cabinet.

Critics will say that Arsenal have now pretty much officially gone into reverse as a team, and certainly as a major force in the English premier league since 2005. That was the last year the Gunners finished in the top two of the premiership even though they were 12 points behind the then champions – Chelsea. Since then they have basically flattered to deceive as genuine title contenders. Over that period, they finished 4th in 2006, 4th in 2007, 3rd in 2008, 4th in 2009, and 3rd in 2010.

As most fans know all too well, winning the English premier league is a tough challenge and it has certainly got tougher in the time since the Gunners last won the league. In that time, although Manchester United have won the league there times and Chelsea twice, a number of newbies have emerged to challenge the orthodoxy.

Enter Old Trafford’s noisy neighbours from Manchester City and the Gunners’ very own neighbours from hell, Spurs. Tottenham have moved from journey men in to a serious outfit under the management of Harry Redknapp who seems to be enjoying the chance to manage a club with big ambitions and relatively deep pockets.

Fancy footwork only goes so far. What Arsenal need is not a flashy striker but some semblance of backbone running through the team. A solid midfielder who can hold the forte while others around him such as Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri surge forward is much needed and the available option simply don’t cut it at the highest level. Memories of Rooney and Ronaldo and then Rooney and Nani running rings around the arsenal midfield and defense in subsequent Champions League semi-finals still haunt the Emirate faithful. Alexander Hleb, a former Arsenal midfielder recently joined Birmingham City football club on loan for the season. His old team could probably use his services even more.

Arsenal’s squad for the new season consists of the following players: Manuel Almunia, Andrey Arshavin, Nicklas Bendtner, Marouane Chamakh, Gael Clichy, Pereka Neves Denilson, Vassiriki Abou Diaby, Johan Danon Djourou-Gbadjere, Emmanuel Eboue, Lukasz Fabianski, Cesc Fabregas, Laurent Koscielny, Vito Mannone, Samir Nasri, Tomas Rosicky, Bacary Sagna, Bilong Song, Dimitri Alexandre, Robin Van Persie, Thomas Vermaelen, Sebastien Squillaci.

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It seems Tom Hicks leaves a trail of devastation wherever he goes. His disastrous foray into the Brazilian football market as chairman of Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst left Corinthians, second most popular club in Brazil, in a state of turmoil.

The parallels between what happened to Corinthians and what is currently happening at Liverpool are unsettling to say the least:

* There was the initial blaze of publicity and fanfare when the company bought the club in 1999, with promises of big spending on the best players and the construction of a brand new 45,000 seater stadium in the suburbs of Sao Paulo.

* There was an initial capital investment to tie down existing players and to finance the purchase one or two other additional players.

* The economics behind the Corinthians deal appeared to be based on ridiculously rudimentary logic: «If you add up all the fans of professional baseball, basketball, football and hockey in the United States, that number is lower than the number of Brazilians who are soccer fans.» Clearly, no proper risk analysis had been undertaken – a situation which resonates with the due diligence period of 3 days prior to the purchase of Liverpool.

* This flimsy approach was reinforced by the apparently rash and impulsive purchase of Cruzeiro six months later – traits which Liverpool fans are rapidly coming to associate with Hicks.

* There was also the emphasis on the cheaper «young players», with the following quote from the (unfortunately named) Richard Law, president of Hicks’ subsidiary group: «Our job is not to turn back the inevitable, but to build Corinthians and Cruzeiro up from the junior ranks.» Hicks followed a similar tack following the takeover of Liverpool: «You need to keep your star players but also develop your young players. Young players are the lifeblood of your team, so we talked about how we can improve that side of the team.»

Corinthians had already won the Brazilian championship in 1998 so Hicks inherited a winning team. The initial expenditure assisted in retaining the league title in Dec 1999 and the club also won the inaugural FIFA Club World Championship the following month.

This is where things started to go wrong.

Unable to resist the temptation to make a quick buck, HICKS BEGAN SELLING TRANSFER RIGHTS TO THE CLUB’S STAR PLAYERS. On top of that, he decided on the bizarre idea of changing the traditional colour of the club’s shirt. He also introduced sponsorship (something which Corinthians fans felt defiled their heritage).

All of these things led to a furious reaction from supporters and widespread protest against Hicks and his partners. The company bailed out three years later, ironically having accused its local partner in Brazil of «misappropriating funds» (read the UTIMCO post and you’ll understand).

Corinthians began to spiral downwards. MSI took over the club’s management but, despite a league title in 2005, the financial problems initiated by Hicks proved too much of a burden. The club was relegated to the second tier of Brazilian football for the first time in its history in December 2007.

THERE WAS NO NEW STADIUM. Hicks invested about five hundred million dollars and within two years filed for bankruptcy.

In a recent prospectus issued to financial companies in London, Hicks claims in to be «a master of purchasing and growing professional sports teams».

Liverpool fans, Texas Rangers fans and Corinthians fans might disagree.

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Cristiano Ronaldo and Ronaldinho have both displayed their phenomenal skills, audacity in their style of play and their ability to change a football game in a matter of seconds. Both have been seen as the best player on the planet, both have displayed how deadly they are when attacking a defender and both have guided their club teams in Manchester United and Barcelona respectively to back to back domestic titles and the prestigious Champions league title. Both players are an asset to their respective clubs and both have been the centre of world cup controversy.

There isn’t much to separate these two major players in world soccer, however the Brazilian Ronaldinho has been named both FIFA World Player of the Year and World Soccer Player of the Year in 2005 and 2006, European Footballer of the Year in 2005, UEFA Club Footballer of the Year for the season 2005-06 and he won the coveted FIFA World Cup in 2002 with Brazil in Korea and Japan. In comparison the Portuguese winger, Cristiano Ronaldo has been named PFA Players’ Player of the Year in both 2007, 2008, PFA Young Player of the Year in 2007; he also placed third in FIFA World Player of the Year and World Soccer Player of the Year in 2007.

In terms of accolades the Brazilian midfield maestro has the edge; however the Brazilian is in the twilight of his career at age 28, while the Portuguese sensation is still very much in the spring of his football career at age 23. The Portuguese also has the opportunity to be the most expensive footballer in the history of the game if he signs a contract with the galacticos, to play at the Santiago Bernabeu next season for a record transfer fee of 90 million pounds.

With the world at their feet both players will be looking to prove that they are without question the best player in the game when their respective season begins. After a terrible season at Barcelona plagued with injury problems which saw him missing most of Barcelona’s games in 2007-2008, the Brazilian will be looking to reassert himself as one of world football’s top players and erase any doubt that may linger in the minds of his fans. The Portuguese will be looking to repeat the form he showed in the season 2007-2008 and cement his skills in football history as the world’s best player.

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