Post-Arsene Arsenal: 5 candidates to replace embattled manager
Once lauded by the Arsenal faithful, a spell of four wins in 15 matches paired with dismissal from the FA Cup and Champions League in the span of a few days has created division with the ranks of Gunners supporters.
Many are calling for the head of their 20-year tenured gaffer Arsene Wenger, while others continue to show faith in the tranquil Frenchman whose term with the Islington side has transformed them from a side famous for boring football to one of liquid initiatives.
With three Premier League titles and a record six FA Cup conquests, the placid economist has earned the right to leave the post under his own accord. With that in mind, here are five potential replacements for Wenger when his ship eventually runs ashore:
Joachim Low
It's easy to look brilliant when you boss a side that features the likes of Thomas Muller, Mesut Ozil, Marco Reus, and Manuel Neuer. Such is the difficulty in assessing Joachim Low's value as a manager.
At the helm of Germany's national side since 2006, with the 2014 World Cup victory a career highlight ahead of 2010's third-place finish and two top-three performances at the Euro tournament in 2008 and 2012, Low's last club job was in 2003-04 with Austria Wien.
Low, 56, was an attacking midfielder in his day, and has also managed Fenerbahce and Stuttgart among others, leading the latter to the DFB-Pokal Cup in 1996-97.
A consistent proponent of technique and creativity in the final third, Low's 4-2-3-1 formation would benefit an Arsenal side rife with attacking talent led by Ozil and Alexis Sanchez. With that in mind, Low would not take a job until after the Euro 2016 tournament, and the Arsenal board would likely want to name the successor to Wenger before then.
Frank de Boer
In his fifth year in charge of Ajax following a decorated career as a defender, Frank de Boer has led the Dutch giants to four Eredivisie titles in his first four seasons at the helm.
An assistant to Netherlands boss Bert van Marwijk during the 2010 World Cup, de Boer has been pegged for higher-profile appointments in the past, turning down the Liverpool gig in 2012 to stay at Ajax.
De Boer, who manages the Amsterdam outfit alongside Arsenal legend and hater of all things airborne, Dennis Bergkamp, is a proponent of both possession-based football and individual expression. Arsenal fans, does that sound familiar?
Employing a 4-3-3 at Ajax, de Boer is loyal to Dutch hero Johan Cruyff's emphasis on the individual, while also putting value on playing from the rear and building a strong squad from the back.
The 45-year-old also demands fluidity in his side, not by clogging the channels, but with pace on the wings, something Arsenal has in droves with the likes of Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Roger Schmidt
With no shortage of competitive fervour, Bayer Leverkusen gaffer Roger Schmidt would be the yin to Wenger's calming yang.
Unlike Wenger, Schmidt puts an emphasis on winning the ball back when lost in possession as quickly as possible, a tactic known in footballing circles as Gegenpressing.
A technique mastered by Jurgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund sides, Schmidt's pressing involves two or three players swarming an opponent in possession until the ball is recovered, squeezing the player on the ball towards the sideline. Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has had success this season employing a diluted form in a midfield press, proving that it can work in the Premier League.
Schmidt, 49, while not as marquee or decorated as his peers, combines Gegenpressing with pushing men forward, often with reckless abandon, to the delight of Leverkusen supporters. Arsenal fans would grow fond of Schmidt in no time.
Quique Sanchez Flores
Who better to manage the Gunners than the man who just thwarted the club's chance of a third successive FA Cup?
Flores, 51, joined Watford in the summer after half a season with Getafe, and the Hornets boss has exceeded all expectations. One of the few Premier League managers to employ a 4-4-2, Flores has gotten the most out of attacking tandem Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney, leading the club on the periphery of London to certain safety, sitting 12 points clear of the drop with nine matches to play.
A La Liga winner whilst playing for Real Madrid in the mid-90s, Flores led Atletico Madrid to a Europa League title in 2009-10 one season after bossing Portuguese titan Benfica to a domestic cup the previous year.
Notoriously flexible in contrast to Wenger's stubbornness, Flores has admitted this season that he is content to experiment until he finds the right tactics, something Gunners supporters have demanded of their boss in the past.
Phillip Cocu
On the heels of a narrow two-legged Europa League defeat to Diego Simeone and his stingy Atletico lot, former Dutch international standout-cum-PSV Eindhoven manager Phillip Cocu would be a natural fit at the Emirates Stadium.
Cocu, 45, was a combative midfielder during a 20-year career with PSV and Barcelona among others, capturing four Eredivisie titles coupled with a La Liga crown in 1998-99.
Eredivisie champ again as a manager with PSV in 2014-15, Cocu's lot sit atop the Dutch table this year despite losing influential attackers Memphis Depay and Georginio Wijnaldum. Beloved as a player at the Camp Nou, coaching's rising star would be a fitting successor to Luis Enrique at the treble holders.
Arsenal would be wise to snatch the emerging talent before another side warms to the idea of signing the gaffer who lines up a difficult-to-beat side poised to repeat as Dutch champs.
Longshots: Manuel Pellegrini, Jorge Sampaoli, Thierry Henry, Steve Bould, Didier Deschamps, Mikel Arteta, Bill Shankly, Lethal Bizzle, Piers Morgan