I like Dick. Despite his lack of English he comes across as a nice guy. I was enthusiastic at first, he talked a good game and the initial results although encouraging, flattered to deceive. The end of his first season saw the sort of capitulation we have become used to under Wenger, abject football and a lack of character when it really mattered. This all culminated in the thrashing at the hands of Chelsea in Baku.

Now here we are a few months into the new season and we sit nicely in the table having played rubbish football for the majority of the time. We have morphed into the Santa Claus of football, a side that keeps on giving. If you want to give your club a lift, play us, we are guaranteed to give you a more than even chance of getting a win. Our defence is as porous as a string vest. However well we play we always give you half a dozen chances to score. If not, our club captain, a liability on the field but wonderful off it will give away a penalty with a stupid tackle or Calamity David is on hand to gift another goal.

These seem to be problems Dick is unable to solve. There can only be two explanations, either the players are too stupid to do what he says or he is unable to coach them properly. It’s one or the other. Without Auba’s goals, Dick’s lot would be up by now surely. Many seem to believe that having Tierney and Bellerin fit again will somehow magically will improve our defensive situation…er really? Since when did Hector display Stuart Pearce-like qualities? Not since I have been watching him. I don’t know enough about Tierney to comment. 

On the positive side we do seem to have a crop of excellent young players coming through and Dick deserves credit for trusting them, throw in Laca, Auba, Guendu, Holding and Leno and we have the makings of a half decent side. Manu U and the Spuds are imploding, whilst Chelsea are ‘growing their own’ so top 4 should be guaranteed.

Despite this my view is that Dick is marking time and will get his cards at the end of the season, and that’s why the club announced that they aren’t going to spend in January. If you can’t improve our defensive play in 18 months you’re never going to sort it. If we are being brutally honest do we look a better side than those under Wenger? Whoever comes in after our current head coach will have a crop of terrific players that can be coached to the next level and most of the Wenger dross will have been moved on.

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