In less than a month, Arsenal will host Manchester City at the Emirates in an FA Cup semifinal that will determine which team moves to the Cup title to face Tottenham or Chelsea. The Gunners are making a run at the FA Cup title for the third time in the last four seasons, and as winners of 12 cups all-time, are looking to add to the highest total in English soccer.
One could be optimistic about Arsenal's run through the FA Cup, but supporters of the club have grown tired of what is merely a band-aid on a wound that continues to fester: Arsene Wenger's job status and the club's inability to win the Premier League. Wenger, a legend who has spent two decades in charge of the Gunners, has a resume others would die for. He's won three Premier League titles, six FA Cup titles and six Community Shields and yet his job is in question due to recent play in the Premier League the past few years.
Arsenal has not won a BPL title since 2003-04, which is a lifetime in sports. While Arsenal has consistently been mediocre during the last decade-plus, rivals Chelsea have won four times and Manchester United five times. Still, Wenger has directed the Gunners to the Champions League every season, meaning he's never outside of the top four, but merely making a home in the good-but-not-good-enough category.
Is it good enough anymore, though? Are deep FA Cup runs good enough anymore? And are appearances in the Champions League Round of 16 adequate at this point? Is the club satisfied with where it's at, or is it wanting to take a step forward? Lastly, is Wenger the man to get Arsenal to take that step?
His body of work should allow him time to fix things, but salvaging a lost Premier League season with another FA Cup title won't be enough this time around. Time may have run out on the Frenchman. Arsenal currently sits sixth in the Premier League table with Manchester United two points ahead in fifth and Liverpool six points ahead in fourth. At this point, Arsenal's run of Champions League appearances is in jeopardy and no Cup title could cover that mess.
An Arsenal that watches the Champions League from home is an Arsenal in decline. A team in decline needs a new voice to lead and the painful parting with Wenger must happen. His status as a legend is cemented, but his services are no longer able to get the club where it wants to be.
Times are tough at Arsenal. The board has been silent on Wenger's future and star players Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil may be on the move. No team will ever turn down a cup title, but for Arsenal supporters there are grander titles out there - ones that Arsenal has not competed for in some time.
Players have come and gone. A new stadium has been broken in. Perhaps the change needs to happen on the sideline.
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