LONDON -- Arsene Wenger says some of Arsenal's critics are only interested in getting attention on Twitter, and that the media has become a "permanent tribunal" that focuses too much on the negative.
Wenger also rejected the notion that Arsenal need major renewal after his 20 years in charge, saying "a good pass is better than a fresh idea."
Wenger is back under heavy pressure this week after two Arsenal supporter groups announced plans for a protest during Saturday's game against Norwich to show their frustrations over the club's failed title challenge.
Despite Arsenal's poor finish to the season, Wenger said during his news conference on Friday that he thought the fan unrest was the result of small groups with "a personal agenda" who try to "manipulate" the supporters.
In a briefing with reporters afterward, Wenger said he wasn't referring to anyone in particular but reiterated his opinion.
"I didn't target anybody individually. When people pretend to be Arsenal fans and every week they come out against the club, you cannot say it's not manipulation," Wenger said. "They look for their own agenda [which] is to get people on Twitter, or I don't know on what social network, and it becomes a way to behave."
Wenger also kept up his criticism of former players and coaches who now work as media pundits, saying they should focus more on lifting up the positive sides of the game.
"I am amazed that people question so quickly the character [of the team]. I must say also in the media it has become difficult, it's a permanent tribunal," the Frenchman said.
"And the media have gone away I think from where people who have been in our job should help people to love the game and the difficulty of the game. They have gone the other way, completely the other way. ... For me, what is beautiful in the game is that our people who have played football could help to develop the love for game. It has nothing to do with our personal situation and that we are frustrated with the game, but philosophically it has gone in a completely different way."
Wenger said he rarely listens to the pundits -- except if a game is on TV when they're traveling on the team bus -- and that he gets his advice from people inside the club.
"I've [managed] a thousand games, I work from morning to night every day in football, I do not need the opinion of somebody who has never worked in the game to know where we stand," he said. "We have a complete analysis of every single game internally."
Wenger has always been set in his ways, repeatedly refusing to listen to the calls for Arsenal to spend big money in the transfer market or change the team's playing style.
The protesting fan groups have insisted that Saturday's display is not directly aimed at Wenger, but are asking supporters to hold up signs reading "Time for change." The sign also says Arsenal have gone "stale" and that a "fresh approach is needed."
But Wenger brushed off the suggestion that he should look to bring in someone with a different viewpoint to freshen things up.
"Fresh ideas, what does that mean? It is completely idiomatic language that nobody understands," he said. "It means everything and nothing, fresh ideas. A good pass is better than a fresh idea."
In other words, Wenger doesn't think Arsenal's playing style has to change much. Only their efficiency.
"What is lacking is that we were not efficient enough in the chances we created. We have qualities, I do not question our quality. But the margin is very small," Wenger said.
"We played in many competitions and suddenly you lose one game that is unexpected, and I must say our team was very quickly under pressure as soon as we lost a game. But for me that is not an excuse or an explanation.
"We have to master all kinds of situations we face and perform no matter what happens. But ideally it's a little bit easier when everybody stands behind the team."
