Arsenal’s official team website has released a two-part interview with the club’s Managing Director, Vinai Venkatesham, and Head of Football, Raul Sanllehi…
During the very open and candid sit-down, both Vinai and Raul look back at year one under coach Unai Emery’s direction, discuss Stan and Josh Kroenke’s involvement, the departure of Aaron Ramsey, and look ahead to the future for the Gunners.
During the 40 minute interview (the first video runs 17 minutes in length, while the second part clocks in at 24 minutes long) both men touched on a broad range of topics. Here are the three most interesting pieces from the videos and what they mean for the squad moving forward into summer and beyond.
The Kroenke’s want to win
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Stan and Josh Kroenke’s names are a lightning rod for Arsenal supporters. It has long been the belief that the club’s owners are not invested in the club’s well-being and are only interested in the money the Arsenal name can generate for them.
That rumor is, somewhat, dispelled by Venkatesham and Sanllehi. He claims that the Kroenke’s are “hugely involved” in Arsenal’s operations and that there are conversations between the owners and Venkatesham and Sanllehi almost daily, with monthly face-to-face meetings in London or the United States.
Sanllehi:
"We feel the support from every time we speak with them, every time we receive a ‘what’s up’ or an email, all the time. Every message we get is supportive, but with one ultimate objective: winning."
The owners still aren’t interested in investing any of their own money into the club, as Arsenal operate as a self-sustaining model, but it is nice to hear that they are aware of the club’s existence.
Aaron Ramsey’s situation will cause organizational change
One of the biggest departures in European football this summer is the move of midfielder Aaron Ramsey from Arsenal to Juventus. Ramsey has spent his professional life in North London and to see him in a different kit will be jarring.
The Welsh superstar was inexcusably allowed to leave on a free-transfer after his representatives and Arsenal brass were unable to hammer out a contract extension. According to Venkatesham, this situation must be avoided moving forward.
Venkatesham says:
"We need to make sure we are really disciplined. A good example of that is where we have senior players that aren’t towards the end of their careers, we need to make sure that those players, when they’ve got two years left to go on their contract, we’re making the difficult decisions. We’re either renewing those player’s contracts or we’re selling those players."
Ramsey had reached the final year of his contract at the beginning of this season. At the point of negotiation breakdown, Ramsey’s reps turned up talks with other clubs, with Juventus presenting the most compelling offer.
Ideally, as important as he turned out to be, Ramsey would’ve been resigned at some point last season. Worst case scenario, there was not a deal reached and Ramsey could have been sold for a hefty price tag last summer. Now, Ramsey walks out of London Colney with Arsenal receiving nothing in return. This sounds like the last time this situation will happen.
It’s all about the Champions League
This isn’t a shocking revelation, but it backs up what supporters believe. Two years outside the Champions League, with possibly a third if things don’t go the Gunners’ way in the Europa League final, has impact felt throughout the club.
The financial bump from Champions League participation could be the difference between signing a top-flight, proven player and a player you hope can live up to their scouted potential. It’s the difference between securing the widely rumored transfer for Ousmane Dembélé from Barcelona to, instead, making the doomed loan move for Denis Suárez from the Spanish side. That’s the financial impact playing in the Champions League can have.
Also, as Sanllehi points out, potential transfer targets want to play in Europe’s top competition. Champions League minutes are on their mind during discussions.
Sanllehi:
"(Arsenal) are a top world club, we are. So we need to go where we belong, and that’s the Champions League. And many players really want us tobe there also, when we’re talking with them."
We all know the Champions League is the most important club competition for Arsenal, and any Premier League side, for that matter. What this highlights is that the lack of Champions League participation could deter top-class players from joining the Gunners during the transfer window. It is apparent that May 29th’s Europa League final against Chelsea holds the key to Arsenal’s future in many ways. If they want to break back into the Premier League’s top four, they’ll need to take care of business in Baku.