First to go - AVB or Wenger?

This weekend could potentially spell the end of one manager’s reign at a Barclays Premier League club…

Long regarded as London’s two biggest sides, Arsenal and Chelsea have so far had less-than-satisfactory campaigns, and with the season fast approaching the business end, Arsene Wenger and Andre Villas-Boas could be forgiven for quietly sweating over their futures.

Following last weekend’s FA Cup exit, and with a mountain to climb in their Champions League round-of-16 tie with AC Milan, it looks likely to be another season without silverware for the Gunners. The only way Arsenal’s campaign will be regarded as acceptable is if they manage to qualify for the Champions League, a competition they have not missed out on since 1998.

For now, the Gunners are barely holding on the fourth spot, where they lead Chelsea only on goal difference, but that could all change when Tottenham visit the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

With games against Liverpool, Newcastle, Manchester City and Chelsea still to come, Arsenal desperately need to pick up all three points against Spurs. And if they don’t, it is time to say au revoir to Wenger in my opinion.

If Tottenham record a win at the Emirates, and Chelsea and Newcastle both win their matches on Saturday, Arsenal would drop to sixth in the table. And doing so at the hands of the Gunners’ bitter rivals will be viewed as a cardinal sin by the Arsenal faithful, even for a manager as revered as Wenger.

Tottenham have no better chance to stick the knife into the heart of Arsenal’s season.

Wenger isn’t the only manager with a huge question mark over his future, with Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas under immense pressure after an uninspiring start to life at Stamford Bridge.

I have been extremely disappointed with what I’ve seen from the Portuguese so far, especially considering he arrived in the Premier League heralded as the next big thing in football management.

Even after eight months in charge of the Blues, Villas-Boas still doesn’t appear to be sure what he wants to do with his side. He regularly changes his tactics, and often deploys his players in different roles, causing plenty of confusion and instability.

Chelsea old guard who are unsupportive of him, and Villas-Boas has to either get them on his side, or drop them completely from the squad, as he did with Nicolas Anelka and Alex.

Still, while many believe he will get the sack by the end of the season, I am confident Roman Abramovich will give him another 12 months at least. He was hired to usher in a new generation at Stamford Bridge, and there have been some fairly promising signs, especially from Daniel Sturridge, Juan Mata and David Luiz, who all look like they could play integral roles for the club over the next decade.

What he now has to do is impose himself on his charges and make sure they know he’s the boss. Once he achieves that, everything will fall in place eventually.

Off Topic

Finally, the first trophy of the season (apart from the Charity Shield) is up for grabs this weekend when Liverpool take on Cardiff in the Carling Cup final at Wembley, and with all due respect to the Bluebirds, this should be a mere formality for the Reds.

Yes, we all saw Birmingham upset Arsenal in last season’s final, but that will not happen this Sunday, simply because Liverpool will be too strong for their opponents.

It has been almost six years since the Reds last brought silverware back to Anfield, but imagine what it would mean for the fans if Kenny Dalglish was to win a trophy in his first full season back at the club?

And with Liverpool still challenging for the FA Cup as well, a domestic cup double could just be what is needed to kick start the Reds resurgence under one of its favourite sons.