After Arsenal's defeat to Schalke the fear for Arsène Wenger is that failure is self-replicating Now 16 years into his reign, Wenger has found an infinite variety of ways to promise happier days ahead. Today's annual meeting of shareholders will test his verbal dexterity again. The reality on the pitch changes but the underlying message is the same. The longer the drought goes on, the more people are tempted to leave. And the more people leave, the more Wenger is forced to turn to old pros, some of who are simply not good enough (Santos is an example). Assimilation and adjustment become the club's raison d"être. In his annual address Wenger is like a preacher insisting that God exists while evidence to the contrary multiplies all around. But he does still have plenty going for him: his intelligence, experience, budgeting skills and faith in expressive football. When Song left, Wenger identified 21-year-old Francis Coquelin as a potential replacement. Last night you could see why. Coquelin is skilful and dynamic. He is a hunter-gatherer with an artistic streak. Carl Jenkinson, the right back formerly of Eastbourne Borough, is another making rapid headway. On the bench sat the 17-year-old German Serge Gnabry, who is tipped for great things. Wenger can continue to argue with some justification that Arsenal are underpinned by a marvellous scouting and coaching culture. The fans, though, will think back to Cesc Fabregas, Gaël Clichy, Samir Nasri, Van Persie and Song and conclude that failure, like success, is self-replicating, especially when other clubs are prepared to pay vastly higher wages. In a more ruthless state of mind Schalke would have put Arsenal two goals down in the first hour. At the other end Gervinho was again press-ganged into a centreforward's role, which left Olivier Giroud, a big summer signing, on the bench until the 76th minute. Gervinho, who was booked for an appalling dive, is no No 9, or not against good opposition. Lacking natural width, Arsenal relied on Podolski, Aaron Ramsey and Cazorla to weave patterns through the middle. It looked hard work. In their favour was a formidable Champions League home record: one defeat in 44 matches. Not since Manchester United beat them in the 2009 semi-final had Arsenal lost control of their destiny on this pitch. But their scrappy, disjointed play invited punishment. It came with 14 minutes left when Klaas-Jan Huntelaar span on to a headed pass in the Arsenal box and smashed the ball past Vito Mannone. Afellay's goal four minutes from time confirmed the rise of the Bundesliga as a threat to Premier League power. Arsenal were lucky to make it that far before being impaled. There was no great deflation as the stands began to empty. The team's followers had lowered their expectations by the time Huntelaar pounced. The Norwich result and the team's rhythm-less performance will have prompted them to seek with renewed vigour the explanations of Wenger and the board. "Keep the faith" no longer seems an adequate riposte to the evidence of regression. For the admiring neutral, it is disquieting to see Arsenal in this state.