Unai Emery

[thebigbangtheo]

A tv program that I have had to endure on occasion is Take Me Out, a dating show hosted by Paddy McGuinness that she enjoys.

The scenario of a poor bloke presenting himself to 20 or 30 women who don't fancy going on a date with him, is that they'll turn their lectern lights off accompanied with a synthesized 'doh' sound.

The moment our team sheet was announced yesterday, all I could hear was that sound, like a thousand gooners one after the other impersonating Homer Simpson.

Whilst we haven't become oblivious to our midfield deficiencies, that we have been Xhaka/Ozil*/Elneny free and seen the baby shoots of a more effective midfield set up, made us feel like maybe we were at last moving forward.

An hour or so into the game put me in mind of the film Perfect Storm, and the moment they thought they had managed to escape the treacherous conditions due to calming waters and bursts of sunlight, only to realise that they were just in the eye of the storm.

I understand the thinking of having Xhaka play his quarterback type role in pinging balls over the top and into the channels to exploit Pepe and Auba's pace, but 2 seconds after that thought, logic told me that Liverpool wont give him the time and space to execute the role effectively when considering his own lack of pace and mobility and the likelihood of becoming just a bystander was probably 70/30 against him.

The one midfield player we know can handle being Red Adair for the day and have a positive effect on the midfield by helping his partners and keeping the ball is Torreira.

Swapping out AMN for Chambers would qualify as a sound tactical defensive manoeuvre to most, especially if both our full backs were instructed not to venture beyond our half but play balls down the line to turn the opposing fullbacks around initially and have them worry about Pepe and Auba pressing them would have been interesting, especially with Laca in the middle waiting for them to use van Djyk and Matip as out balls.

This match was effectively having a fight with a bad man in his own house. Not just because I think he is more suitable to a left wide midfield role than left back/wing back, but I think Kolasinac played forward of Monreal instead of Willock was the way to go in this instance. Having Willock and Ceballos coming on with 15 to go of a close game, yes please.

I am of the opinion that in having a possible front 3 of Auba, Laca and Pepe, we have a potent attack capable of being as good if not better than Liverpool's fabled front line.

Liverpool have a deadly weapon, they recognise that fact and use it at every given opportunity resulting in an incredible last 3 years and champions league winners no less.

We have Dirty Harry's magnum .57 fully loaded. It currently appears that Emery intends to use it as a rolling pin or baseball bat to club people with.

* I am not a Ozil hater

[Phil71]

He has a big job on his hands.

The huge void in quality between the two sides yesterday is testament to that. It’ll take us years to get to a level where we’re challenging for the top trophies.

I agree with you Phil, but how long have the dippers team being playing together? all this meltdown sh1t is over the top FFS anybody would think this is the last few games of the season. Considering I wasn't too disappointed with the team effort. one of two were the usual shit but we are not playing with the best players yet are we. The fight was still there at the end so we can build. If and that's a big IF the strikers had taken their chances we would of at least go a draw. I am looking forward to the season, considering the state of the team mentally and physically when the don took over he is not doing too bad. Lets see at the end of the season shall we. FFS lets get behind the Team.

Oh I agree with all of that.

I’ve been following Arsenal man and boy. Since 1971. I’ve seen lots of ups & downs.

This patch we’re going through is nothing compared to some of the shit I’ve seen over the years.

Yeah people should get behind him and the team. What’s the alternative? The poisonous, toxic negativity we had at the end of Wenger’s era? No thanks.

[Zedie]

You're comparing liverpool's front three that have been together for 3 years versus our front 3 that have been together for under 2 full game weeks.

Also, liverpool are so much more than their front three, the rest of their settled team is what allows that front 3 to play in such a manner.

We will get there but unfortunately itll take longer than 3 games or 3 minutes or a match.

[jayramfootball]

I'm simply amazed that the same people that cried about how we shouldn't get pumped 5-0 by them now want us to go toe to toe.

The same people who defend ozil to the death have f**k all to say about ozil pulling another sickie and leaving us to field willock

The same people that were arguing we were 3 years away from competing against liverpool and man city are in the matchday thread claiming our midfield of two 20 year olds and xhaka are match for liverpool's midfield.

The same people who used to whine about Wenger's 1 formation are now complaining we don't stick to 1 formation.

As predicted, we drop points and narratives are written out to fit how terrible everything is without thinking about the whole picture

Things like:

We still don't have out first team fullbacks, while people are lauding what actual first team full backs did to us yesterday. Then ignoring the no first team fullbacks issue we have.

We flopped on upamneco and bought luiz at the death instead and now we have to live with his pros and cons for a season minimum. (Probs good enough for top 4 not the title).

We didn't replace xhaka

We started 3 new signings yesterday who have had a total of roughly 180 mins playing together.

Ozil took another day off.

Monreal can't run faster without the ball than a man with it.

We were playing away to the european champions who have a fully fit prime championship winning squad at home.

If you want to call these excuses, go ahead but at least try to explain with more than an offhand comment why these issues aren't a massive indicator for you as to why we weren't dominating liverpool at their gaff yesterday.

Once some of you have calmed down, you'll realise how big an ask yesterday was with the team available and circumstances.

Zedie, perhaps it's you who should calm down.
Most of us alkeady realise we're on a long term journey and are not as good as Liverpool (or even close at this time).
Give it a few more years of transfer windows and if we continue the trajectory, we'll ge there. The club is going as fast as it can to rebuild. I still don't think you quite realise just how bad Wenger was and how much he destroyed the club from top to bottom. There is no overnight fix.

There is no need to generalise about 'the same people'. You're wrong on most counts.

So you say the same thing I do but I'm wrong? Ok mate. Another L for your collection.

No, you're dead wrong when you generalise in the way you did. I've seen various reactions to the game.
There is really no need for the trolling.

That's why I talked about the same people and didn't use everyone.

You don't actually read my posts, you comment blindly because you're on a wind up constantly.

Can you highlight where I said everyone?

Please stop doing this to yourself

I've argued that we are at least 5 years away from competing for the title - I was not claiming our midfiled was a match for theirs.
I don;t know anyone who has 'defended Ozil to the death' - rather I have seen people correctly state he is an excellent player and don't buy into the doom and vitriol levelled at him.
I said we shouldn't be beaten 5-0 by Liverpool - and we weren't. I haven't said any of the things you mention in your list.

You're just screaming at the sky because we lost.
The strangest thing of all is that it is actually you who said we should be competing against the best this year.

Lol did I address you directly? Ffs you're hella paranoid.

And again with that last para, you've been exposed so resort to making stuff up like you have been since you started this weird exchange.

What's up with you?

What's up with me? Nothing at all. I am not the one rehashing every argument just because we lost to a much better team. It's going to be a long season for you if you get so OTT after every loss with a barage of 'i told you so' posts. Just chill and don't get so emotional about it. Like I said, our competition this year is Spurs/Chelsea/Utd/Everton/Leicester. Great season if we finish above 4 of those 5. That's how Emery should be judged. We're only just over a year into a long term rebuild.

[Angelito]

Some people are asking Emery to do all of the things we were criticising Wenger for lol

Wenger earned everything at Arsenal by spearheading the club into its greatest period ever. There is no peak higher than 03/04 at Arsenal and that was Wenger's Invincibles.

We both know Arsenal transcends a manager/coach.

With Wenger, I believe we should learn that if a manager isn't up for it, he should go. By 2012, it was pretty certain that Wenger wasn't elite anymore, but since he was such a great manager, he still managed to win trophies after peaking.

Wengerball is the best thing to have happened to Arsenal. But it had an expiry date.

There is no Unaiball. There never has been. And, we shouldn't be tolerating mediocrity.

Yesterday, he was on the wrong. If we finish in the top-4, he would have earned his right to stay. But is he the man to take us forward? Well, all I want to say is that Raul Sanllehi doesn't seem like a sentimental man.

In previous years, Wenger was the be-all and end-all at Arsenal. Now, we have Raul, Josh, Edu, and Vinai running the show. If a coach/manager isn't delivering, we always have the option.

We're not Stoke City to be thankful that we're only 1-0 down to Liverpool at HT. We sure aren't Palace to be thankful to be tied 0-0 with Spurs—the reigning UCL finalists—during HT at the Emirates.

[Power n Glory]

Just looking at the Liverpool game thread before the match, I really don't get why some of you are criticising other posters for their analysis on the game.

There was a level of expectation and hope going into this game. From the approach, line up and strategy. A lot of talk before kick off but today I seen some posters do a 180 on their original views and it seems like it's a cardinal sin to even discuss the game or possibility that maybe we got it wrong.

Views before the game kicked off.
viewtopic.php?f=25&t=32911

Zedie.

For some reason I think we can really test their defence. Theyve seemed all over the gaff since the start of the season.

Tony_Adams

Leno
Niles - Papa - Luiz - Kolasinac
Guendouzi - Torreira
Pepe - Ceballos - Auba
Laca


Subs : Martinez - Chambers - Monreal - Xhaka - Willock - Nelson - Özil
This'd be my preference

Nuggets

If we can get a result at Liverpool it will send out a message that Arsenal are on the right track.

DiamondGooner

Leno
Niles - Sokratis - Luiz - Monreal
Torreira
Guendouzi - Ceballos
Pepe - Lacazette - Auba

This line up.

Perfectly balanced midfield for once as well.

Tbf I'm not expecting a win at Liverpool, I'll be honest if we can snatch a draw that would be a result, I'm just looking to see if we can compete properly and keep the score line tight.

A drumming would not be good or warranted with this team, yes Pool may be better, but our line up is more than good enough to compete properly this year.

Tony_Adams

We have to attack them, if we sit back they'll destroy us.

We sat back, we didn't attack as much as we could, we played a very weak central midfield combo, the formation wasn't what was expected, same goes for the team selection. It wasn't balanced. Again, I think a lot of those defending Emery need to go back and look at their own posts and expectations before attacking others. This one game doesn't change my opinion on Unai Emery or my expectations on how we'll finish in the league but that's what's disappointing. A win would have sent out a message and given the players and fans a huge boost in confidence.

Before the game kicked off, I think Jayjam made a good point about our strategy with the front two and it played out that way.

Jayjam

Auba can't hold the ball up. He is terrible at it.
Pepe - I don't know. Maybe.
But if our only counter involves the front 2 breaking free, it's a bad strategy.
Wingbacks is a terrible idea against Liverpool.

[Losmeister]

god, all the multi/multu/multiquotes...

anyway... this squad is transitioning. mus/elneny/ozil/nacho/ramsey on the out bus, dani/torrito/douzi/pepe/luiz/tierney incoming...

i'd sure like to see what AFC lookslike once the old guard squad is completely flushed.

those who belive Unai is NOT the man for AFC will write lengthy posts supporting how they know what formations a nd players we should play better than he.

shrug. our good ol GW panel of European Cup winners... go shine your trophies, m8s

[ag6789]

Every defeat we will moan and groan, every bad football match we play we will moan and cry, because at Arsenal we are used to be a top team playing enviable football for 20 years, until last three.
The football we played yesterday was ugly, an eyesore, weak . Don't think any decent PL manager will plan such a horrendous game. I can guarantee much smaller teams will give 'Pool a run for their money for we made them look much greater than they really are. Foolish team selection and foolish strategy will make any good team look pedestrian, ineffective. That's what been happening for almost an year now. Unai, after two whole summers and a whole season has no clue what his first team should be and the capability of his players. Don't expect him to figure that out in a hurry, either. He is really a mid table coach, not good for Arsenal ambitions.
The sooner we jettison this fool the better we will be.

[Losmeister]

is 78 pts an acceptable 2nd and 3rd year? just curious

[Callum]

Emery is starting to p!ss me off.
Too pragmatic.
I expected us to go for it. Play Laca, Auba, Pepe, Ceballos in the middle and Play Torreira too.
I am expected us to go all out and test ourselves against a very good Liverpool team.

And we would have lost 6-0.

[thebigbangtheo]

Emery just needs to be brave, play to our strengths and not respect the opponents too much.
Laca, Auba and Pepe need to start together the majority of games.
We need to play with our strongest formation 4-3-3 almost every game.
I like managers who know when to adapt and when not. They are games, where you apply different tactics to your usual ones.
Emery overdoes adapting, that we don't have any own style. We would play Burnley at home, and Emery would still play to their strengths and weakness instead of playing our own game and that's my issue with him.
He should just stick to our best players and formation in the majority of the games and adapt only when needed.

And that has always remained the case with Unai Emery. His career has been riddled with criticism on tinkering with the system, playing negative football, poor performances in big games, struggling in away games, a poor final run-in in the league, and his rigidity as far as personnel go.

It won't change at Arsenal.

Let me ask you something: how many of us actually wanted Unai Emery at Arsenal? Apart from Cripps here, I can't think of any. I wanted Conte or Simeone. Others wanted Ancelotti, Allegri, or Tuchel. Heck, some wanted Arteta. It's simple. He's a good manager but he's not elite.

In fact, Unai Emery is a great manager for a club like Everton. But sadly, he's too smalltime in his approach for Arsenal. I'll hope we finish in the top-4 and win a trophy this season. But that doesn't mean he's immune to criticism.

We had the same problem with Wenger at Arsenal. The same fans who're going out of their way to defend Unai, defended Wenger in the same rigid style. We don't have to do that. The performances speak for themselves.

The sad part for me would be fans "celebrating" a draw against Spurs next week as a display of tactical nous and innovation. Don't be surprised to hear, "We're playing the UCL finalists and people are overreacting because we're drawing against them?"

Give me any manager. If they underperform, I will criticize them. Loyalty to managers ended with Wenger and Wenger is an Arsenal legend. If a new manager wants to see such loyalty, they'd have to win big at Arsenal first.

Top-4 is a cakewalk this season. United and Chelsea are so poor that if Lampard or Solskjaer outwits Unai to 4th place, it'd be the worst season for us in recent times—simply because how clear cut we have it in the race for top-4 this season.

Yesterday, Unai made a huge blunder with the line-up. It's not the first time. If Wenger stuck to his guns, in Unai, we have someone who's too afraid to own a gun. We can't dither in such extremes. We have to be protagonists in matches—using Unai's own words.

I've heard that Klopp found it amusing that we played a diamond. That should tell us everything. We allowed two of the best attacking FBs of last season ample space and actually left two of our most robust players on the bench.

Some very good points made. Good post.

[Callum]

god, all the multi/multu/multiquotes...

anyway... this squad is transitioning. mus/elneny/ozil/nacho/ramsey on the out bus, dani/torrito/douzi/pepe/luiz/tierney incoming...

i'd sure like to see what AFC lookslike once the old guard squad is completely flushed.

those who belive Unai is NOT the man for AFC will write lengthy posts supporting how they know what formations a nd players we should play better than he.

shrug. our good ol GW panel of European Cup winners... go shine your trophies, m8s

[Losmeister]

Emery is starting to p!ss me off.
Too pragmatic.
I expected us to go for it. Play Laca, Auba, Pepe, Ceballos in the middle and Play Torreira too.
I am expected us to go all out and test ourselves against a very good Liverpool team.

And we would have lost 6-0.

could have been. for me it was... 1st objective) dont get your ass kicked by halftime 2nd) see if you can get at least a pt in 2nd half...

its a shame...we coulda easily been 1--1, or 2-1 at half.

[Callum]

Emery is starting to p!ss me off.
Too pragmatic.
I expected us to go for it. Play Laca, Auba, Pepe, Ceballos in the middle and Play Torreira too.
I am expected us to go all out and test ourselves against a very good Liverpool team.

And we would have lost 6-0.

could have been. for me it was... 1st objective) dont get your ass kicked by halftime 2nd) see if you can get at least a pt in 2nd half...

its a shame...we coulda easily been 1--1, or 2-1 at half.

Yep, agreed. We've tried to outplay Liverpool at Anfield too many times and we always ended up with a hammering.

[1991]

god, all the multi/multu/multiquotes...

anyway... this squad is transitioning. mus/elneny/ozil/nacho/ramsey on the out bus, dani/torrito/douzi/pepe/luiz/tierney incoming...

i'd sure like to see what AFC lookslike once the old guard squad is completely flushed.

those who belive Unai is NOT the man for AFC will write lengthy posts supporting how they know what formations a nd players we should play better than he.

shrug. our good ol GW panel of European Cup winners... go shine your trophies, m8s

transitioning to what? arsenaI have been in transition for the Iast 15 years
we wont be in transition when aubameyang hits 32? do u beIeve emery wiII turn us into chaIIengers Iike kIopp did for pooI?