What if Wenger leaves?

By @Swegoon

First of, this is not a Wenger out blog it's a what if Wenger leaves blog. Second, these are just my opinions and not facts.

So it looks increasingly possible that come summertime Wenger might be out the door. Apart for all the other troubles it would leave us with we'd be without a manager. This leads me to ask, if Wenger leaves who would I like to see replace him. On second thought replace might be a strong word here, no one can really replace all that Wenger is in this club. When he leaves a lot of what he does will probably land on the board or perhaps a newly appointed sports director. However as far as coaching goes someone will step up in his place, the only question is who. For me there are many possible and more or less suitable candidates. To somehow rank these I scored them in five different categories which I also weighted differently. Finally I summed up their total score. Below I have presented top 5 and given my views on them.



5. Paul Lambert
Age: 42
Nationality: Scotish
Team: Norwich
Paul Lambert represents a football that would be acceptable, he has a decent winner instinct and experience. In this competition most things about him are average and while that gives him the fifth highest total score it may also be his biggest draw back. The only thing that really stands out about him is his ability to deliver good results with low investments. Though we have to remember that Wenger was not the obvious choice back in the day and Lambert could, if he is given time, deliver longterm. Lambert would almost certainly be available if we were to inquire about him.
Score: 39

4. Lucien Favre
Age: 54
Nationality: Swiss
Team: Borussia Monchengladbach
What Lucien Favre did last season with Borussia Monchengladbach is quite extraordinary. When he was brought in Gladbach was seemingly hopelessly heading for relegation. Favre put his mark on the team and without any transfers at all to speak of did he not only save them from relegation but transformed them into one of the best teams in the Bundesliga. Gladbach is currently 4th in the league, only one point behind leaders Bayer Munich. Question marks can be raised over his winner instinct and philosophy. He is also not the most experienced manager of the bunch. Securing Favre would be more complicated than Lambert but certainly not impossible.
Score: 41

3.Nigel Adkins
Age: 46
Nationality: English
Team: Southampton
Nigel Adkins started his off pitch career as a physio which lead the fans of Scunthorpe, his first club as a manager after an early spell at Bangor City, to chant “Who needs Mourinho, We've got our physio”. Adkins has an excellent record as manager, three seasons at Bangor he won the league twice. Four seasons at Scunthorpe saw them being promoted to the Championship twice, something he also achieved during his first season at Southampton. Questions could be raised over his ability at the top after two failed seasons in the Championship with Scunthorpe, although the current season with Southampton has shown otherwise. Still the least experienced of the five. Would probably jump at the chance to manage Arsenal would it be given.
Score: 42

2. David Moyes
Age: 48
Nationality: Scotish
Team: Everton
David Moyes need no further introduction, he is well known amongst all gooners. Moyes has for years kept Everton just below the absolute top despite being heavily restricted on the transfer market. Along with Favre the only one who has done this at the highest level. If any manager deserves a chance to prove himself at a financially more sound club it would be Moyes. The only question is if he would go to Arsenal or if he is waiting for Sir Alex to retire.
Score: 44

1. Jürgen Klopp
Age: 44
Nationality: German
Team: Borussia Dortmund
Of all the managers not already snapped up by absolute top clubs in Europe Jürgen Klopp is by far the best. He is also the one most suited for Arsenal. Klopp is a winner who urges his team to play a beautiful yet efficient football. He is excellent at bringing young players into the team in a way only matched by Wenger himself. Lacks a bit of European experience but apart from that he is as close to a perfect fit as there is. Although there is one, big, question mark. Will he ever leave Germany? Maybe, but he would be expensive and we'd face fierce competition. May be out of reach but would certainly be the obvious choice for me.
Score: 47

My choice is to go for Jürgen Klopp if we think we can get him, otherwise I wouldn't mind Adkins or an outsider like Favre.

Others that didn't make the top 5 are Ralf Rangnick, Owen Coyle, José Mourinho, Guus Hiddink, Brendan Rodgers, Christian Gourcuff and Remi Garde.

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