Arsene Wenger calls for unity as Arsenal’s shareholders vent anger

- This time there’s no promise to end trophy drought- Kroenke rejects claims he’s failed to meet with fans
P82 LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 25: Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger attends the clubs annual general meeting at Emirates Stadium on October 25, 2012 in London, England.
James Olley25 October 2012

Arsene Wenger today urged Arsenal supporters to remain united for the good of the club’s future at a stormy Annual General Meeting.

The club’s 11th AGM was a turbulent affair with shareholders heckling the board and demanding explanations for their seven-year trophy drought, high ticket prices and the sale of several stars including Robin van Persie and Alex Song.

Majority shareholder Stan Kroenke was in attendance but found himself under fire from fans demanding he meet with supporters groups while chairman Peter Hill-Wood and chief executive Ivan Gazidis were frequently interrupted and challenged by disgruntled observers.

Wenger stepped in towards the end of the 75-minute meeting at Emirates to issue a rallying cry different from previous years in which he has often asserted that the Gunners’ long wait for a trophy will end imminently.

He said: “I know there seems to be a lot of dissatisfaction and I can understand that because we want to win. But it is also important that we don’t go overboard. If everybody is devastated when we finish third in the League, I promise you I will be not be here when you finish 15th one day.

“For me, there are five trophies — the first is to win the Premier League, the second is to win the Champions League, the third is to qualify for the Champions League, the fourth is to win the FA Cup and the fifth is to win the League Cup.

“I say that because if you want to attract the best players, they do not ask, ‘did you win the League Cup?’, they ask you, ‘do you play in the Champions League?’.

“We want first to win the Premier League, that is what we are here for and that is what we want to fight for — believe me will give absolutely every drop of energy to achieve that and will do that again this year.

“I accept every different opinion but it looks to me that the modern world creates inside every big community, little communities. The multiplication of media creates little groups of different opinions and we see that in this club.

“But these little communities have to learn to live together for one common thing — the strength of our club. We have to keep that in mind. We understand you do not always agree. It is still important that we keep our strength and stay united for the good of Arsenal, sometimes you can forget that.”

Gazidis was forced to defend the club’s transfer spending amid claims Arsenal have a cash reserve in the region of £70million and Wenger said: “The financial discussions are not my job. But you can be proud that you produce the resources that your team delivers. I wouldn’t be proud to take my wages at the end of the month just because somebody puts a cheque in and says, ‘okay, take my money.’I’d like to think every club could pay their players with their own resources — there is no need to be ashamed of that.”

Kroenke was embarrassed when challenged directly to name the supporters groups he alleges to have met since taking control of the club 18 months ago.

Tim Payton from the Arsenal Supporters’ Trust claimed Kroenke had not yet met with supporters in direct contravention of a legal stipulation that he would do so as part of the takeover offer document.

Kroenke responded: “I’m surprised Tim would step up and make that statement because I’ve met with him numerous times. And by the way I still meet with fan groups, all fan groups.”

The assertion was met with catcalls from the floor and Gazidis intervened: “Can I just again depersonalise this a bit? This club is not about Stan Kroenke, it’s not about Arsene Wenger, it’s not about any of the individuals. It’s not.

“We run this club through our board. That’s how it’s run. And through our chief executive. The idea that one person makes the decisions for the club is just not the way we run ourselves.”

The American tycoon, whose group also owns US sports franchises Denver Nuggets of the NBA, Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer, Colorado ­Avalanche of the NHL and NFL side St Louis Rams, refused to answer directly whether he would take money out of the club as dividends in the future.

Kroenke said: “This club are run through the board. I have always been respectful of that process. Aside from that, as majority shareholder it is clear we have a record in sports around the world and you can look at our record with our other clubs. We have never put any debt on this club for acquisitions [during the takeover] and never said money was not available to spend. We acquire through our own resources.’’

“I have one regret with Arsenal and that is that I did not get involved earlier. We have a record of reinvestment in our other clubs and it is there for everyone to see.”

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