Arsene Wenger’s position at Arsenal is coming under increasing pressure, and many feel that the club should start to prepare for life after the Frenchman?
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger
Following Arsenal’s midweek defeat to Bayern Munich, the calls for Arsene Wenger to bring the curtain down on his time at the Emirates have arguably reached an unprecedented level.
The Gunners are 10 points off Premier League leaders Chelsea, and will need to overturn a four-goal deficit in the second-leg against the Bundesliga side if they hope to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
With Wenger’s contract up at the end of the season, and with the Frenchman yet to agree a new deal, it is starting to appear a very real possibility that Arsenal could have a different manager in charge for the opening day of next season for the first time since the mid-1990s.
But who should the Gunners hierarchy target if Wenger calls it a day? Here are some of the names that supporters may want…
Diego Simeone
Diego Simeone has done an incredible job with Atletico Madrid, winning the La Liga title in 2014 and twice taking them to the Champions League final. Having performed a similar job in Spain, he may be the ideal man to elevate Arsenal from top four contenders to title winners.
Marcelo Bielsa
Marcelo Bielsa boasts one of the most extensive managerial CV’s around, having worked across several top leagues and at international level with both Argentina and Chile. That would perhaps ensure that he is able to adapt to what life at the Emirates may be like.
Massimiliano Allegri
Massimiliano Allegri has spent his entire managerial career in Italy but would surely bring that winning mentality having won the Serie A title in both of his two full seasons with Juventus. A third appears to be on its way.
Thomas Tuchel
Thomas Tuchel has followed Jurgen Klopp’s career path having taken the Mainz job shortly after Klopp left the club for Borussia Dortmund, and it was Tuchel who succeeded the German when he left the Bundesliga giants months before he turned up at Anfield. Could Tuchel now follow Klopp to the Premier League and take over at Arsenal?
Jurgen Klopp
Klopp’s passionate approach to the game would surely be the perfect contrast to Wenger’s methodical outlook. There is a sense that he is creating something at Anfield, Arsenal should surely do everything they can to convince him that they are ones that he can transform into a powerhouse, however unlikely it is that they will be able to lure him away from Merseyside.
So while those names could capture the imagination should they arrive at the Emirates as Wenger’s replacement, here are three names that may be more likely to be included on any shortlist the club put together even if they are not the marquee figures the fans perhaps want…
Eddie Howe
Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe
Eddie Howe has won plenty of plaudits for the job he has done at Bournemouth. The Cherries can play some brilliant football at times, and the Arsenal board may consider him to be the perfect man to lead the club into the new era. Whether he is ready for such a role makes a potential appointment a gamble. Mind you, Wenger’s arrival in 1996 was deemed a massive risk.
Laurent Blanc
Laurent Blanc has four Ligue 1 titles to his name, but it must not be forgotten that three of those were secured while in charge of Paris Saint-Germain, where he seemingly had an endless amount of funds to work with. He also enjoyed a solid, but unspectacular, spell in charge of the France national team.
Ralph Hasenhuttl
Ralph Hasenhuttl has a tremendous record when it comes to developing teams, having taken Inglostadt for example, from the second division to mid-table in the Bundesliga. He now manages RB Leipzig who have been Bayern’s nearest challengers in the top flight this term, despite only getting promoted last season.
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