Silent majority made their voices heard at Arsenal, but Wenger can’t let criticism fall on deaf ears

Richard Jolly: The majority of Arsenal fans on Saturday chorused Wenger’s name. It was a rebellion of the masses, an uprising in the name of decency, a mutiny against the radicals. Even Wenger was surprised.

One Arsenal fan shows his support for Arsene Wenger. Ben Stansall / AFP

The problem with the silent majority can be that they are precisely that. The vocal minority can dominate the debate. Their views, often more extremist opinions, can seem more prevalent and more powerful than they actually are because their opinions go unchallenged.

We live in an era when those who shout loudest can be heard most. Amplified by social media, which has had a corrosive effect on discourse, the 21st century has brought a revival of the fortunes of the fanatics, whether Donald Trump in the United States or Britain’s Corbynistas.

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The Arsenal fan base, forever whipped into a frenzy by their self-appointed spokesman Piers Morgan, have acquired a reputation as one of the most hysterical in football.

The sense was that Arsene Wenger would endure a distinctly unpleasant evening at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, if not a cauldron of hate then certainly an arena packed with people telling Arsenal’s greatest manager they wanted him to leave the club.

And then the silent majority made themselves heard. Thousands held white placards saying "time for change" in the 12th minute, denoting Arsenal's 12-year wait for a Premier League title, but many more did not.

The majority chorused Wenger’s name. It was a rebellion of the masses, an uprising in the name of decency, a mutiny against the radicals.

Even Wenger was surprised. The modern-day diehards can give the impression they command more support than they actually do. “Did I think it would be worse? Yes,” said the Frenchman.

“From what I was told, I thought the whole stadium would be white.”

It was not. What it outlined is that there remains considerable respect and gratitude among the majority.

Three Premier League titles, six FA Cups and 19 – soon to be 20 – top-four finishes enable him to still command their loyalty.

The overreactions at Arsenal, who exhibit a consistency and a continuity that is now unrivalled in England, can meet bemusement elsewhere.

There are plenty of crisis clubs, ones with wretched owners or poor managers or who are enduring unsatisfactory seasons, if not disappointing decades. Arsenal are not one of them.

There are legitimate grounds for concern. This season provided Wenger with his finest chance to secure a fourth, and surely final, league title.

Arsenal have squandered it in ways that have shown old criticisms, about a lack of ruthlessness and a reluctance to spend, about defensive mishaps and the mentality required to win games when such a prize was on offer, remain valid.

Arsenal fans are entitled to worry that the bar will be raised elsewhere next season, and that their side will be unable to reach new heights.

In a division that will welcome Antonio Conte and Pep Guardiola, where Jurgen Klopp and Mauricio Pochettino will have had longer to stamp their mark on their sides, where maybe – because no one really knows – Jose Mourinho will return, will Wenger still rank in the elite quartet of managers in 12 months’ time?

Determining what the silent majority think tends to be difficult, for self-explanatory reasons, but it would be entirely reasonable if they wondered why some players, such as Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, have stagnated at the Emirates and if others, such as Olivier Giroud, are really good enough to be regulars, and if Wenger would benefit from an addition to his coaching staff to help prevent them conceding in such damning fashion at times.

They are all pertinent issues. There are the questions of how, and when, Wenger’s long reign will end, and if Arsenal are a club drifting until a successor is installed.

Wenger, as his critics have noted, has been paid very well to display such commitment to Arsenal but when a manager has achieved all he has and has overseen 20 seasons without any being a failure, he is a great and the greats deserve more leeway.

The critical mass of Arsenal fans proved they understand as much. The rest can just sound off on Twitter as usual.

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