Arsenal’s former left winger, Andrey Arshavin recently spoke about his disappointment with the atmosphere at the Emirates. The Russian international was part of Wenger’s team for 4 years, with part of one of those spent on loan with the only other team that he ever played for. He returned to Zenit during the summer after managing 23 goals in 105 appearances for the Gunners. According to ESPN, Arshavin who never really impressed while playing for the North London team, said that one of the reasons for his poor performances was the result of poor fan support for the entire team. The 32 year old expressed his opinion regarding the fans after Villas-Boas recently pointed towards Tottneham supporters who according to the Portuguese manager, are not creating the proper atmosphere for the team to thrive.
Arshavin compared the Emirates Stadium atmosphere to a theatre which hosts shows people only come to watch. According to the Russian international, Gooners have no passion and pay a lot of money to only enjoy a show, not to actually give something back to the team. Because of that particular attitude, Arshavin felt the Gunners had no advantage playing at home.
Arsenal’s former player is not, at least according to him, the only one to complain about the atmosphere in the stands. The 32 year old said that most of the biggest footballers that has played at both the Emirates and Highbury felt the same way.
In related news Wenger spoke about losing two recent games at home. The Frenchman tried to explain to both fans and the press that even though Arsenal go on the pitch with the sole intention of winning each and every time, accidents happen regardless of the home advantage.
He also seemed focused on the team’s way of handling defeat and mistakes like the ones against Dortmund. Wenger is not at all concerned with where the matches are played so fans are not a problem. Gooners have always been known for being well educated people that have a certain standard but that never made Arsenal’s boss unhappy with the way they support their team.