‘From The Terraces‘ gives CaughtOffside readers the chance to see their own articles appear on the site. Just email us your submission.
This time COS reader Matthew emails us a response to fellow reader Graham‘s vote for Sir Alex with a little backing for the Frenchman as the Wenger vs. Ferguson debate continues.
I agree with previous reader Graham that there will never be a clear victor in the Wenger vs. Fergie argument so I will also simply state my case for the one I support: Wenger.
My approach to the question Wenger vs. Fergie was simple, I analysed the impact each manager has had on the league, both by the performances of his own team i.e. raising the bar and with new ideas and methods.
On both counts Wenger is unparalleled in my view; his radical shift in playing styles from dull and dreary to fast and flair-filled leaves many regarding Arsenal as the most attractive team to watch in England, and most of Europe (with the exception of perhaps Barca, though they tend to win things by scoring offside goals, but I digress).
In terms of changing how other teams operate, Wenger can claim to be a visionary. Teams up and down the league now operate physical training regimes similar to his. Manchester United (and Fergie) brought in Steve McClaren to bring them up to speed while other teams changed their process radically because of Wenger (admittedly his training methods were not all his own, David Platt said that he had experienced most of them during his time in Italy, but Arsene made the techniques work in England where many others would fail).
In terms of comparing footballing achievement between Ferguson and Wenger – Arsene has managed what neither Sir Alex nor any other manager has, his team went a season unbeaten in the league. You could argue that Ferguson should win here because his sides have retained the title – something Arsenal have failed to do in the Premiership.
But retention is not that rare, being invincible is.
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