Le Prof faces toughest problem of his career

ARSENE WENGER’S place in English football history is assured for so many reasons.

He is the first foreign manager to win the English league.

He is the man the press admire for bringing intellect to soccerspeak, a willingness never to duck a question and the man Alex Ferguson dislikes, primarily because of his aloofness in refusing to partake in a post-match drink and chat with fellow managers.

True, he is as short-sighted as a blindfolded mole when it comes to seeing the disciplinary misdemeanours of his own players, yet he is also the man whose vision of bringing the Beautiful Game to the muck and nettles of the English Premiership transformed Arsenal from masters of the 1-0 bore to the most entertaining team in Britain.

But, if Wenger is not careful, his football reputation, carved over almost a decade at Highbury, could be compromised by the enemy of so many great managers too much loyalty.

Strengthen when at your strongest is the fundamental maxim which underpins every enduring football success story. It kept Liverpool at the forefront at home and in Europe for the best part of 25 years. It characterised the Manchester United teams of the 1990s.

If Arsenal was a car, however, Wenger might have been charged with driving without due care and attention this past 18 months when the Gunners have slid from "Invincibles" to a team no side fears.

Yes, I know they are still in the Champions League, with an intriguing tie against Real Madrid to come. And somehow they are in the semi-finals of the Carling Cup, after luckily scrambling past League One side Doncaster on penalties.

"The team is back on track and ready to do well again," said Wenger after that victory, admittedly with a mainly reserve team.

Yet the words carried little conviction and the doubts remain.

Dennis Bergkamp, such an important figure in winning three Premiership titles, retires at the end of this season but has not been replaced.

Robert Pires is 33 next month and no longer the force which once made him Footballer of the Year, while only Arsenal fans with long memories could tell you when Freddie Ljungberg last inspired with the panache of old.

And while Thierry Henry remains the jewel in Wenger's crown, the French striker's contract expires in 18 months and, come May, the lure of Barcelona could prove irresistible.

On top of that, Arsenal fans are entitled to ask why Patrick Vieira, the captain and driving midfield inspiration, was allowed to leave for Juventus when no replacement of similar standing or experience had been lined up.

Hardly surprising, then, with so many concerns, that Wenger has appeared uncharacteristically tetchy of late, and got himself embroiled in the most farcical pantomime of the festive season with Jose Mourinho.

So far Wenger's brilliance at football horse-trading anyone who can offload Nicolas Anelka for £22million (€32 million) has a future in finance has kept him immune from the heat experienced by Ferguson at Old Trafford.

There have been no expensive duds in Wenger's transfer dealing, the nearest being Sylvain Wiltord who cost £12m (17.5m).

Quite what the Wenger radar was recording when he bought Pascal Cygan for £2m (2.9m), however, is debatable, the centre-back being the most obvious liability in an Arsenal defence which has lost its famed dependability. But Wenger has balanced the Arsenal books at a time when their new stadium, ready next season, took priority.

For that, Arsenal should be grateful and patient. The chances, however, are a lot more of those two qualities will be needed before the Arsenal youngsters on show at Doncaster are ready to complete the transition to a new era. The problem with modern football and for Wenger is that the here and now almost always supersedes the promise of tomorrow.

It is why this Christmas, with Arsenal eighth in the Premiership and 20 points behind Chelsea, the Frenchman faces the most crucial period of his Arsenal reign.

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THE Premiership big boys continue to use it as a plaything for their reserve teams. Elsewhere spectators vote with their feet.

There were a shade more than 13,000 fans to watch Wigan defeat Bolton to reach their first Carling Cup semi-final. The next night, a little more than 14,000 saw Blackburn beat Middlesbrough at the Riverside.

Yes, little Doncaster had their moment in the sun. But, let's face it, in a football world of increasing fixture congestion, when live football can be watched on the box every night of the week, the Carling Cup is the competition no-one cares about.

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HARRY Kewell berates the critics who have dared to suggest he is a malingerer.

And there is no doubt the groin injury which saw him substituted in the first-half of Liverpool's Champions League final in Istanbul was worse than first thought.

But now he is fit and playing and it is time to repay the faith of Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez.

That means at least looking something like the determined and skilful player who, when he played for Leeds, was one of the Premiership's most exciting talents. Losing the ponytail would be a good start.

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THE Football Association insist the new Wembley is on course to host the FA Cup final on May 13.

Yet the Australian construction company building it admit that the stadium might not be ready in time and London mayor Ken Livingstone insists: "If I was booking a train ticket now, I would probably get one to Wales rather than to Wembley."

Two words come to mind for the FA head and sand.