Arsene Wenger was instantly given the nickname 'the professor' when he arrived at Arsenal 19 years ago.
Now he seems more like the nutty professor as he blindly makes the same mistakes every season with predictable consequences.
Six games into the Premier League season and Arsenal supporters are already rolling their eyes. They see this movie every year and they know exactly what happens.
At least Groundhog Day has a happy ending, but sadly is doesn't look like anything will change for Arsenal while Wenger remains in charge.
The Gunners have won just three of their first six league matches of the campaign and lost twice already, the latest in Saturday's hotly-contested 2-0 defeat to Chelsea.
It leaves them five points behind Manchester City at the top of the Premier League and it's already difficult to see how Arsenal are going to launch a genuine title challenge.
In the Champions League, the north London side lost their first group game to Dinamo Zagreb and will already fear qualifying second in the group and facing one of the top sides in the last 16.
All we need now is the full-blown injury crisis - and that does not look too far off with the likes of Jack Wilshere, Danny Welbeck and Tomas Rosicky all out with long-term problems.
Arsenal have finished either third or fourth in the Premier League in the last 10 seasons, while they have been dumped out of the Champions League at the last 16 stage five years in a row.
The excuse about paying for the Emirates Stadium expired a long time ago and now angry Arsenal supporters are asking a legitimate question.
What is more important: profit or glory?
But despite finishing 12 points behind the champions last season, Arsenal did not sign a single outfield player during the summer transfer window.
It now seems ridiculous that anyone at Arsenal, most of all Wenger, really thought they could win the title by only adding goalkeeper Petr Cech to the squad.
Not when Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United invested so heavily in their squads over the summer. That is what ambition looks like and Arsenal's season is shaping up exactly as you would expect in the circumstances.
Despite winning back-to-back FA Cups, there is no sign that they are ready to challenge for the title for the first time since the 'Invincibles' side in 2004.
Three years after Robin van Persie was sold, Arsenal are still without a top class striker and are relying on Olivier Giroud and Theo Walcott to lead them to the title.
They are two players that define Wenger's Arsenal. Good but not great.
The likes of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are the kind of players that can win a club trophies, but it always feels like there is something missing.
"I think Arsenal has the squad to be champions," said Jose Mourinho after Saturday's match. "And every season I feel that."
Mourinho isn't the only one. We all get sucked in by Arsenal's impressive runs of form and pretty football, but they don't have the mentality of champions.
Wenger bitterly complained about Diego Costa's antics when he goaded Gabriel into the reaction that resulted in the Arsenal centre-back being sent-off.
But surely the Frenchman would kill to have a player in his side with that sort of will to win.
There was a time when Wenger's teams were known for playing on the edge themselves with the likes of Patrick Vieira and Martin Keown - and their ill-discipline would often result in red cards.
That was an Arsenal side that knew how to dig in and win the league over a gruelling 38 game season.
Wenger's current contract expires in 2017 but there have been whispers around the club that he might step aside a year earlier.
He believed the speculation around his future distracted the players when he let his deal run down in 2014 before agreeing to stay for another three years after Arsenal's FA Cup triumph.
Wenger will undoubtedly have a big say in appointing his own successor and there are coaches around who could take the Gunners to the next level. Jurgen Klopp and Carlo Ancelotti are currently out of work while Pep Guardiola could become available next summer.
Wenger is the chief executive's dream. He treats the club's money as his own and has ensured lucrative Champions League revenues for a remarkable 18 seasons in a row.
It is great for Arsenal's shareholders, but not the fans who want a return to the glory days.
There was a time when Wenger's teams were known for playing on the edge themselves with the likes of Patrick Vieira and Martin Keown - and their ill-discipline would often result in red cards.
That was an Arsenal side that knew how to dig in and win the league over a gruelling 38 game season.
Wenger's current contract expires in 2017 but there have been whispers around the club that he might step aside a year earlier.
He believed the speculation around his future distracted the players when he let his deal run down in 2014 before agreeing to stay for another three years after Arsenal's FA Cup triumph.
Wenger will undoubtedly have a big say in appointing his own successor and there are coaches around who could take the Gunners to the next level. Jurgen Klopp and Carlo Ancelotti are currently out of work while Pep Guardiola could become available next summer.
Wenger is the chief executive's dream. He treats the club's money as his own and has ensured lucrative Champions League revenues for a remarkable 18 seasons in a row.
It is great for Arsenal's shareholders, but not the fans who want a return to the glory days.
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