According to the Mirror, Arsenal Head Coach Unai Emery has a month to save his job. The club have been quick to distance themselves from rumours linking them with former Manchester United and Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho but that doesn’t mean the Spaniard’s position is safe. Even at this early stage in the season the Gunners face a hugely important clash this weekend as they travel to the King Power Stadium to take on 3rd placed Leicester City.
Although we’re only eleven games into the Premier League season here is why we believe affording Emery that extra month could do the type of damage that’s beyond instant repair.
Why prolong the inevitable? A fresh start is required
Emery has struggled to embed any clear philosophy since he joined the club in 2018. Despite some initial positivity during his first campaign in charge, the team have been in decline since at the very latest April when his decision to make wholesale changes versus Crystal Palace in a Premier League game cost him the upper hand in the race for the top four.
Add to that, the Gunners were humiliated in the Europa League final by London rivals Chelsea and it’s safe to say the clubs season ended in ruins. Since then, Emery has struggled to win over the full support of the fanbase. The lacklustre, uninspiring and generally poor performances at the start of this new campaign have left many wondering if it will ever work under the Spaniard.
The boss’ bizarre decision to allow the players to elect their own captain has indirectly led to a falling out between Granit Xhaka and the clubs supporters, a player whom Emery has persisted with despite his sub-par performances. Mesut Ozil has been ostracised in recent months (Bleacher Report via The Metro) and turned to by Emery almost in desperation to try and inspire a turnaround and there are concerns regarding the rest of the group’s relationship with their current boss.
This ship is only heading in one direction
Arsenal Football Club is far from the harmonious place it once was and so, although their current position is far from disastrous, it’s difficult to envisage Emery steering this large and volatile ship back on course. His controversial team selections and often mind-boggling substitutions during games highlight his desperation for an instant upturn in results. The best managers stick to what they believe in for the most part but the reality is Emery appears to have been walking down a blind alley and making it up as he goes along for quite some time now.
If the Gunners were to fall nine points behind Leicester City and Chelsea this coming weekend, it would likely deal the group and Emery with a huge psychological blow, spark further unrest in the camp and give the board a real decision to make. If the captain of this great ship is leading them on a collision course why wait a month to push him overboard?
The damage appears to have already been done, there is no need to leave it any longer.
