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Mathieu Flaimini’s decision to seek greener pastures at AC Milan has caused a massive upheaval for the Gunners. Despite forging a formidable midfield partnership with Cesc Fabregas, Flamini chose to forsake his blossoming career by cashing in on his status as a free agent.

Is he right to do so? I will say yes, considering how he has not been given due respect for his contributions. Being a French player of Italian origin, he is simply moving to the country of his parents, adapting to a new environment should not be a problem.

Arsenal fans are now questioning the wisdom of their boss in the wake of Flamini’s departure, Alexander Hleb’s imminent transfer to Inter Milan, and Fabregas’s possible move to Real Madrid. Jens Lehmann is already on his way out and the club is not keen to keep Gilberto and Philippe Senderos.

Wenger’s reluctance to countenance top quality signings and high wages to challenge other elite clubs has left fans and shareholders highly skeptical in their hunt for silverware. Compared to Manchester United’s policy of securing players 18 months in advance of their expiring contracts, Arsenal system for identifying and starting critical contract negotiations seems to be lacking.

So far, only Fabregas is tied down with an attractive long term deal stretching to 2012 and he is expected to stay for the time being, but Hleb, at age 27, needs a retirement nest. The Belarusian may invoke the Fifa rule which allows players to leave a club after three years of a long-term contract, provided they do not move to a club in the same country.

Wenger had miscalculated the fallout from Flamini’s transfer. What is most painful from this botched negotiation is the club gets nothing in return for a talent which they had cultivated. Some view Flamini as a traitor and a money grabber for walking out on the Gunners. The fans had accepted him as one of their own but yet he rejected Arsenal’s final contract offer of £55,000 a week and defect to AC Milan on a free transfer… for just £10,000 more.

What prompted him to do it? As a free agent, he should command more since Milan already saved a huge chunk of the transfer fees. I suspect the push factor is not merely about money even if it is a strong motivation. Being in a capitalist society, any player who claims with a straight face that he just loves to play football and don’t care two hoots about money is being unrealistic.

But capitalism is no excuse for the deplorable behavior of players who yearn for money so much that they desert their morals and loyalty to a club readily. The throwback to the acrimonious parting of ways between “Cashley Cole” and Arsenal is still vivid in my mind. Has Flamini become Fla-money and are we to expect a book from him in the near future depicting his miserable underpaid service to the Gunners?

I certainly hope not. It will be a travesty of justice, after all, Wenger developed Flamini into what he is today. Not world class but nevertheless a reliable player who is headhunted by several clubs today. Flamini was a nobody when he arrived from Marseille four years ago. During this period, he “survived” on a £8,000 a week deal, small change when it comes to wages in the Premier League.

Due to a lack of first team opportunities, he stated his desire to leave. However, he still maintained a positive attitude, whenever chances came his way due to injuries or suspensions of team mates, he rose to the occasions. Knowing what he can achieve, he desired a new contract to reflect increasing value and responsibilities. Good old Wenger stuck by his guns and said no.

Instead, a new six year contract extension worth £50,000 a week was hammered out with Fabregas who was just barely into his original contract. Flamini was disappointed and wanted to buy out his remaining contract but Wenger convinced him to stay and prove his worth. Another reason for keeping Flamini, who was not yet a crucial member in Arsenal squad, was that Birmingham City were the only club to come in for him.

This season, Flamini came to the fore, thanks to Gilberto Silva’s loss in form after the Copa America. He shone brilliantly and became the major driver of Arsenal’s midfield engine. In view of his exceptional performances, there is no more excuse for delaying a lucrative contract.

However, Wenger left it late till January to table a firm offer which by then, Flamini’s contract has run down and he was already in a position to negotiate with any club he wishes. Better late than never, you say. Sadly, Arsenal refuse to meet Flamini’s request of £55,000 a week; they dragged their feet over £5,000 which shows how insincere they were about securing Flamini’s future.

While Flamini held on to his stand, he continues to serve Arsenal in a professional manner and his efforts on the pitch was unaffected. When Wenger finally realized that a host of clubs were hot on the heels of Flamini’s signature, he put up his final offer of £55,000 a week, refusing to match any of the suitors.

Deep down, Flamini must be feeling like an outcast, he put in the same amount of effort as Fabregas. In fact, he does most of the dirty work in tackling and is the water carrier in midfield, while his colleague only needs to show flashes of brilliance to claim all the awards and financial rewards. Flamini desires that his salary is commensurate with his performances and pegged to the market, I can’t argue with this reasoning.

I am disappointed that Wenger did little to reverse the situation simply because he did not want to break the club’s wage structure for any player. But that is exactly what he did when he offered Thierry Henry £100,000 a week in 2005. The soon to be concluded deal with Fabregas (£70,000 a week) also reflects badly on his double standards.

The crux of the problem does not lie in a shortage of cash. It is Wenger’s self-imposed financial discipline and no wonder, the owner, Peter Hill-wood loves him so much. Wenger mentioned his hands are tied from the construction of the Emirates Stadium which left the club £300 million in long term mortgage debt. That is why he adopts a conservative fiscal policy where the club can survive without buying too much.

Wenger insists the Gunners must respect their tight wage structure or “go bust” and rely on external resources, like Chelsea. Indeed, no player at the club commands the six-figure weekly salaries of Michael Ballack, Andrei Shevchenko, Frank Lampard and John Terry. He said: “I feel always when we make a decision in the club, the same decision is valid in 10 years. We want to respect what is planned. When we have paid our debt back, we work with higher resources.”

Hill-wood confirmed the transfer war chest is available and that Wenger has “never been denied a penny.” He is pleased with Wenger’s reign (rightfully so) and remains confident in Wenger’s judgment of talents, saying: “We are very happy with him and I think he is with us. It is laughable to think he doesn’t have the support of the board. ”

Wenger is keeping his fingers crossed that his current squad can stay together on the basis of integrity and honor, despite tempting offers aboard and empty-handedness for consecutive seasons. He said: “It is a problem - the salaries on offer - but we did not master this situation with Flamini because when a player is out of contract he can sign where he wants. I am disappointed but legally he can do it. But I hope that the core of the team, says ‘come on, we have only just lost’.”

Actually, Arsenal did not “just lost.” Against Manchester United in the FA Cup and in the trilogy with Liverpool, they were outplayed and in several matches, they scraped through, thanks to character and errors from the opponents. Arsenal were not able to gain any advantage against teams who were prepared to rough them up and destroy their fluid passing game. In the past couple of months, Cesc Fabregas’s goals and midfield wizardry dried up and Adebayor was misfiring badly too.

I believe the original intention for Wenger is to add just one or two players and build on the existing team, instead of making a grand show of ambition with a shopping extravaganza. But with the squad falling apart, he needs heavy reinforcements in several positions, else youngsters like Denilson and Nicklas Bendtner have to improve drastically and turn in consistent performances.

I expect William Gallas to wear the captain’s armband once again after Wenger’s staunch vote of confidence. It is fair to say that the Gunners collapse is not due to Gallas’s petulant behavior but as a leader on the pitch, he has to be conscious of the influence he wields over his team mates in times of crisis.

Lending support instead of public shows of contempt when they made mistakes is crucial in fostering camaraderie. I don’t think he gained allies in the Arsenal camp either when he commented that his best friends were in Chelsea, ie. Lampard and Terry. Gallas will learn though, given that he is only one year into the captaincy.

As for injuries, Arsenal had been unlucky with Eduardo and Robin van Persie hurting themselves so badly. I believe Wenger should sign more strikers or attacking midfielders to increase their options in difficult away games and keep Adebayor and Fabregas fresh for the championships run-in. Alex Hleb must be retained at all cost, at least for one more season, when Wenger has found another candidate to take over the reins.

On the possible incoming players, Arsenal are targeting Croatia midfielder Niko Kranjcar, who had an outstanding season for Portsmouth and is set to be one of the stars of Euro 2008. Gennaro Gattuso, a Champions League and World Cup winner, may be leaving AC Milan to join Arsenal. He has often expressed his desire to play in the Premier League and he is now at the “right age” where Arsenal’s wage structure seem attractive.

So it is not all doom and gloom. Due to his ability to unearth and polish raw diamonds on a shoestring budget, his handsome achievements in the past and the classy football his team dished out (only Manchester United produce such winning, attractive football but they have spent much more), Wenger enjoys some leeway but Arsenal will not be permitted too many trophyless seasons.

My advice for Wenger is this, loosen up a bit… another barren season may raise the specter of him being sacked and his prudence in keeping so much cash may result in the next manager squandering it all away.

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