Morgan : Wenger swapped the Invincibles for the Vulnerables
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Have you learned anything from Sir Alex, Arsene?
This was the season when I was utterly convinced that Sir Alex Ferguson's 24-year reign of despotic terror was over. And all the signs pointed to his imminent extinction when, after losing his two best players, Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez, in the summer of 2009, he looked like he was going to lose his third, Wayne Rooney, earlier this season, too.
United looked poorer than any of us could remember from August to November and Ferguson's numerous enemies began rubbing their hands in undisguised glee at what seemed to be his inevitable demise.
Then, against all the odds, he won his desperate fight to keep Rooney. And in that moment, United's season kick-started again and their manager regained his mojo.
Turning point: Sir Alex Ferguson convinced Wayne Rooney to stay earlier in the season
By contrast, Arsenal went through a reverse scenario.
Arsene Wenger's young guns played out of their skins for the first seven months of the season and by February 27, seemed destined finally to end our six-year trophy drought.
We were in the final of the Carling Cup, riding high in the league, marching on in the FA Cup and had just thrillingly beaten Barcelona in the first leg of our Champions League encounter.
Then BOOM - one of the worst meltdowns I've ever seen from an Arsenal team. A cataclysmic capitulation so bad that it still almost defies belief.
The tipping point was losing that Carling Cup final to Birmingham. I watched that game with a mounting sense of unease that our glorious charge to silverware had just hit the buffers - hard. I just didn't see winners in those Arsenal shirts. I saw a bunch of wondrously gifted footballers with no idea how to close a deal. And, even worse, I saw a manager who had no apparent idea of what to do about it.
Meltdown: Arsenal inexplicably lost to Birmingham City in the Carling Cup final
Just when his precocious stars desperately needed some Churchillian-style inspiration, Wenger went missing. While Ferguson fired himself up for the business end of the season, Wenger sulked, moaned, chucked bottles and made excuses.
His mood seemed deflated as much by events off the pitch as well as on. From the moment his bizarre affair with a French rapper was alleged, Arsenal insiders say he lost weight, lost his sense of humour and, frankly, lost the plot.
This is not a great United side. Even their most die-hard fans would admit that. But whatever you think of Ferguson, one thing he has always been able to do is get the very best out of his teams. And he turned this fairly average United squad into champions through sheer force of his personality - and astute leadership.
Experience: Ferguson has kept faith in older players such as Rio Ferdinand (left) and Paul Scholes (right)
If you ask me the key difference between Arsenal and United, it's that Ferguson understood the necessity of having older, experienced men in the dressing room like Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Edwin van der Sar and Rio Ferdinand.
Arsenal have none. And that's Wenger's fault. He got rid of them all - great players like Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Freddie Ljungberg, Robert Pires, Sol Campbell and Gilberto were all sent packing long before they needed to be.
And with them went the winning mentality you need to grab silverware. Wenger swapped the Invincibles for the Vulnerables and that was a big strategic error which continues to haunt us.
Sir Alex Ferguson has scored surely the greatest win of all his 12 titles.
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Arsenal seek Blackburn's Samba magic in £12m deal to fix leaky defence
Nothing shall pass: Christopher Samba has been a tower of strength for Blackburn this season
Arsenal are ready to rekindle their interest in Blackburn’s towering centre half Christopher Samba.
Gunners manager Arsene Wenger is looking to spend big this summer after a disappointing finish to the season and wants to strengthen through the centre of his side.
He likes Everton’s Phil Jagielka, Bolton star Gary Cahill and Mamadou Sakho of Paris Saint-Germain but they are likely to cost more than Samba, 27, who said a move to the Emirates nearly happened in January.
Aston Villa were also keen to sign him in a swap deal with James Collins but Samba signed a one-year extension to his contract in February. He has grown frustrated at Blackburn’s slide and is keen to make a big move.
A fee of around £12million could see Samba lining up for Wenger next season.
Samba said: ‘I am at an age where I want to try to do something. You have only one career and it would be a shame not to make the best of it.’
Fenerbahce are keen on Andrey Arshavin and Wenger may offload the Russian midfielder for around £15m to offset his rebuilding. Zenit St Petersburg are also keen but a move to Spain is more likely.
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Come on for 6years, there are excuses but nothing is in the silverware cupboard!
ENOUGH!
Arsenal fan