Be careful what you wish for Roy Keane.
After complaining about Arsenal players’ level of commitment to trophies relative to selfies and six packs wouldn’t you know in their next competitive match the Gunners hoisted the Community Shield trophy not just on the field but in the locker room showing off their maligned six packs while taking photos.
Keane’s criticism has to be taken with a grain of salt as he starred for Manchester United who rivaled Arsenal during his career and the Irishman was a player known for toughness who would barely crack a smile never mind stop for a photo opportunity.
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Keane’s comments in question were “Arsenal have some really good players—some good characters who roll their sleeves up. But they also have one or two players who are more interested in selfies and six packs, guys who are trying to get their pictures taken every day of the week. Every year we hear the same thing about Arsenal being contenders. Instead of focusing on the Premier League, it’s all about how their bodies look, how their hair is, more so than winning football matches. Look at all the players they’ve bought over the last couple of years. I’m not sure many would get into the Chelsea team”.
Cristiano Ronaldo loves to pose after goals and Gareth Bale wears his hair in a bun when he plays. I don’t think Keane would argue they aren’t serious about winning trophies at Real Madrid. As far as buying players who wouldn’t crack the starting 11 of Chelsea, that can be said for many teams chasing the champions.
Arsenal is building a squad with continuity and options, and are probably a world class holding player away from being Chelsea’s toughest competition. All of the top teams have issues. If Wenger was able to lure countryman Paul Pogba from Champions League runners-up Juventus would selfies and hairstyles still be an issue for Arsenal?
Oxlade-Chamberlain fired back, “It’s a new era, isn’t it? Some people do it, some don’t. We’re serious about winning trophies. Personally, and I can speak for the rest of the squad, we’ve been serious every single year I’ve been at the club about winning trophies. You can see that on the pitch. A lot of people don’t see when we lose and go through tough times how upset and disappointed we are. We’ve always wanted to win trophies and in the last years we’ve won a few. This season we want to go that one better.”
In today’s dressing rooms, shirtless photos are no different than the ones that were taken 20 and 30 years ago. The only difference is now the photos are taken on an iPhone, not with a newspaper photographer’s camera, and they end up instantly on Instagram, not in the club’s museum archives.
It is just a sign of the times. When you are trying to assign blame you first gravitate to things you don’t ascribe to. When Keane was playing cell phones didn’t take photos. When Keane started his career the internet didn’t exist for public consumption. His focus on match day was solely on football because the periphery factors he loathes were not yet options. Imagine a fan giving Keane stick on Twitter? He’d be doing more apologizing online than posting pictures. David Beckham had multiple hairstyles and Ryan Giggs took off his shirt after scoring against Arsenal in the FA cup semifinals, yet it didn’t stop Keane’s United side from winning the treble in in 1998-99.
Every generation has something that annoys the old guard. A decade or two ago it was coloured boots. The sign that Beckham was wearing Adidas Predators and Precisions on his feet that made him stand out meant he was selfish. Beckham might have been concerned about building his brand as well as winning trophies but on the pitch he was far from selfish, and one of the most willing and brilliant passers of his generation.
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Then it was coloured boots that weren’t in the team’s colour scheme. Ronaldo started wearing gold boots that had nothing to do with the kit colours. The narrative became that the player’s choice was a sign he was bigger than the club. Yet nobody had an issue when Ronaldo had a golden touch in front of goal. Now every player has neon boots that have nothing to do with the kit and a rebellious style choice is wearing all black boots.
Technology has changed the way players interact. In the days Keane played, a clap for the supporters section and a couple signatures as you depart the team bus is how you showed the fans your appreciation. Now in a day where everyone wants more and more access a player connects with the fan by bringing them behind the curtain and in to his life as a footballer. Pics from training, national team duty, vacation, and to Keane’s dismay the dressing room are all routine.
Remember in Europe there is no locker room scrum or post-game player press conferences like we are accustomed to in North America. The fact Arsenal players are feeding to a fan base that is starving for content is only natural. It’s not just the players; teams release these photos on the club accounts to help grow the fan base.
Keane’s message got lost in the language of speaking out against a generation. But his underlying message has some merit and in fact is not that controversial; it is something the football community has been saying for years. If you boil it down, what Keane meant to say is Arsenal does not have enough steel in their team. This has long been a criticism of Arsenal even dating back to when the Gunners were the chief rival to Keane and Manchester United in the 1990s.
Under Wenger, Arsenal has always played champagne football. Seemingly being able to create chances and score goals for fun with breathtaking pace and precision. However, when it was time to gut out a result there was not enough spine to the team. With the amount of talented players that have come through their side they seem to have underachieved.
The historic criticism of Arsenal came at a time when the Premier League was still very British both on the pitch and in the manager’s chair. Some of the criticism was code for giving the Frenchman Arsene Wenger a hard time for signing too many import players. Today stylistically they still play a very open and fluid game and Arsenal has still been a safe landing spot for Wenger’s countrymen, however now Arsenal might be the most “English” team of the top four. The success of the Three Lions hinges on the growth of key Arsenal men Kieran Gibbs, Calum Chambers, Jack Wilshere, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Theo Walcott, and Danny Welbeck. Add Welshman Aaron Ramsey to the equation and the Gunners might as well play with a union jack as a crest.
Despite Keane’s criticism Arsenal has won trophies just not the right ones. Last year Wenger captured a record-tying sixth FA Cup, making him the most successful manager in the competition’s history with George Ramsay. That gave Arsenal a record-breaking 12th FA Cup title. Not surprisingly the Gunners grabbed press reporters’ cameras after winning the FA cup last year.
The Community shield is a glorified friendly so it isn’t wise to take too much from winning the competition. A year ago Arsenal beat Manchester city 3-0 and that form didn’t translate to coming close to winning the league as they finished a distant third. Yet this year the game had more meaning thanks to the ongoing spat between Wenger and Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho. The two managers fielded much closer to first team sides and on the touchline after the game deliberately didn’t shake hands. This was Wenger’s first ever win over Mourninho, the streak providing added motivation for both men to win a trophy nobody really rates.
More important, the way Arsenal played put down a marker they might be dark horses to push Chelsea for the title. They were organized, they had attacking intent, and they showed the desire to win 50/50 balls that even Keane would have been impressed by.
This is an Arsenal team that isn’t built to batter opponents but instead give its manager options to manage a long season with squad football. Wenger has the ability to be fluid in his strategy with a player that is direct such as Alexis Sanchez, has power and strength such as Olivier Giroud, or the invention of Mesut Ozil.
Wenger’s switching between goalkeepers Wojciech Szczesny and David Ospina was less than ideal a year ago. Now stealing Petr Cech from Stamford Bridge adds a dominant leader in goal and enhances their title chances. The side isn’t totally style over substance as I don’t expect to see Cech’s scrum caps in any vines or periscopes.
Arsenal is a fun loving squad who love to play with both the photogs and the fans. I receive there celebratory photo ops as testament that they enjoy their football, not that they don’t enjoy the sacrifice it takes to win. But I am a millennial socialized in a different era than Keane.
Keane’s criticism isn’t wrong it was just misguided. The Gunners have the skill to change their perception. No filter or crop, only a clear as day photo of more trophies in their cabinet will silence critics like Keane, as distorted as his criticism might be.