It is times like this that can leave feeling really let down by the club that you follow. since our elimination at the hands of Barcelona, our season appears to have crumbled and we can only be thankful that 3rd was almost certain at that point, despite our best efforts to lose that as well.

In contrast, Arsenal fans have been treated to some below par performances and frankly dull games as the season winds toward its conclusion this Sunday afternoon at home to another London club with something to shout about.....Fulham.

It does seem to be a longtime since we had a good reason to party and it does seem like we have spent too long waiting for the current squad to deliver. Yet I can't help but feel some fans are expecting too much from the club and its manager.

I have no doubt that we will add some proven experience to our ranks this summer but I can assure you that it will be our youngsters, the Walcotts, the Denilsons and the Bendtners that will need be the route to any long term, sustainable success that the club achieves.

Before you think I have finally cracked in my love and defense of all that wear red & white, consider a few points, Firstly, the Premiership now has three clubs that are happy to spend £100m plus on players each season, this is not a situation that our club can compete with in the short-term and we must rely on the uncovering of hidden gems like Vermealen  every year or we need to continue the development of our young squad, otherwise Arsenal will not only be devoid of silverwear, we will be devoid of Champions League football.

In addition to the points above, both require Arsene Wenger at the helm of the club to achieve these things. To coin a phrase, many of our fans appear to "want their cake and eat it" at the moment. The manager has been heavily criticised for not making enough signings, heavily critisised for showing faith in his players and heavily critisised for sticking up for them. All of this from our own fans?

I'm not making excuses, he has made mistakes but the talk Wenger having to deliver next season and that he is past his best are beyond a joke. There is no manager in the world that can develop youth or spot bargains in the transfer market like Wenger, both of which are key to us ever winning any competition due to the huge canyon in buying power between ourselves and others.

One should also consider the fact that without Wenger, the club would immediately lose Fabregas, Van Persie, Nasri and Arshavin. A new manager would have an equal amount of cash or less to spend and probably far less of a reputation to bring in the top players.

If and when Wenger does leave I am already resigned to the fact that Arsenal may begin to struggle qualifying for the Champions League, there are times when I can see us struggling to achieve it whilst he is still with us, such is the gulf financially between us and our rivals.

The reason the club had the Invincible season, the reason we had that amazing success, winning doubles for fun was largely down to the fact that Wenger was able to get prized assets at rock bottom prices and levergae great performances. But as time has gone on, money has become a bigger and bigger factor in the game and when all is said and done, I believe many will say that keeping Arsenal competetive for so long was another great achievement.

The manager and/or the board have prioritised paying off the clubs debt over success on the picth in the short-term and that plan appears to be working, with the club paying down £120m of debt in one year.

Of course that depends on how you mark success, there are few other clubs that have made as many QF, SF and final appearances as us in the Champions League and very few that win the plaudits of all in world football whilst doing it.

This has been a really tough 3 years for Arsenal fans but I remember being over the moon when we qualified for the Uefa Cup on the last day of the season thanks to DB10. It could be a lot lot worse.

Just imagine how an advert for the Arsenal job would read:

WANTED : ARSENAL MANAGER

Required: Win Premier League once every other year and multiple cups, along with multiple CL final appearances. Applicant must be able to attract the worlds greatest footballers with 20% of competitors budgets and still sell them at huge profit in order to recruit further talent in the future.

Benfits: On winning the league you will be considered a legend by all until you fail to repeat the feat. At this stage you must continue to retain your squad in face of rival clubs tapping them up every week and offering 3 times their salary, whilst some of your home fans consider booing them during periods of low form.

Desirable but not essential: The ability to be composed after another one of your youngsters is crippled by a so called "saint" during an average league game.

Our manager does make mistakes but we need to stick with Arsene Wenger with or without trophies because when he leaves we are going to look back on these years with warm regard.

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