The story has gone up on the Telegraph this evening, and none of the Arsenal blogs I follow have picked up on it yet, especially with the focus on tomorrow's North London derby, so I'll take up the commentary:
They say they'll be able to comply with Financial Fair Play.
This is where Wenger has looked terribly weak. Where Chelsea have apparently spent money to make money, and are (apparently) set to comply UEFA's Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules, Arsene wouldn't cough up an additional £1 million or so to sign Xabi Alonso, who has since been an ever-present for champions Spain and Real Madrid; which has also seen him lose Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie. Arsene has been undone by his conservatism. No risk, no reward.
If they can make a convincing case that they can comply with FFP, with convincing plans to quadruple the revenue from sponsorship deals, for example, then it has to be a tempting offer to Arsenal supporters.
Arsene Wenger is widely mocked by supporters, and by Man City Manager Roberto Mancini in an interview last week, as not really trying to win - or at least not having a winning team as his top priority. He indulges in a vanity contest of trying to win against the odds, trying to win on a tighter budget than most observers believe to be the actual budget.
The damning indictment is that one of Wenger's most cherished points of pride, his degree in economics, has failed him, and that he's been poor at handling the economics of football; that he's been too conservative and didn't take sensible risks that would have elevated the team. And his reputation as a great talent scout is now a former reputation.
The following players should be in the Arsenal squad, but they're not, and I view it as a failing of Arsene's:
1. Yaya Toure
2. Cesc Fabregas
3. Robin van Persie
4. Xabi Alonso
5. Gareth Bale
6. Sergio Aguero
Those are the level of players that would make being an Arsenal supporter more fun. Those are the sort of players that would be in the squad if Arsene had built on his previous success, rather than regressing.
In light of Arsene's recent failings, the takeover bid is tempting, as an Arsenal supporter, especially if it can be done in compliance with FFP, with increased revenues that are acceptable to UEFA.
If there's not a convincing case that the deal could be done in compliance with FFP, and if Arsenal win tomorrow, overturn the 3-1 loss to Bayern in the second leg (away!), and finish this season in the top four, then the offer would feel less tempting.
The bid source who talked to the Telegraph seemed to know his stuff, mentioning the Old North Bank. It sounds like they have fans in their consortium.
6 minutes ago