Arsenal: Unai Emery wants Petr Cech and Granit Xhaka to do things they can’t

When a new manager joins a club they need to find which players can adapt to new ideas, Granit Xhaka and Petr Cech are struggling to do so at Arsenal.

Since Unai Emery has taken charge of the almighty Arsenal, we have seen his often misplaced faith placed in players who will not play to his preference. Granit Xhaka and Petr Cech epitomize Emery wanting certain players to play a certain way when they are incapable of doing so.

This is no fault of the manager, or the players mentioned prior, but just an occurrence that happens when a new manager is appointed, otherwise known as, “growing pains.”

Emery will soon discover, Xhaka is NOT a Defensive Midfielder

Despite his large frame and his obvious admiration of flying into tackles, Xhaka is not the next Patrick Vieira. When the Swiss international arrived at the Emirates, fans were wrongly convinced that he was the destroyer that we were in dire need of.

That is not the case.

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Xhaka can be described as a long-pass playing, box-to-box midfielder who likes to get stuck in. He’s a bit of a unique breed. There is no doubt that the best Xhaka is seen when he has a “proper” defensive midfielder next to him. Playing to the strong suits of the Swiss, a bad man is essential to add some serious steel into Arsenal’s central midfield.

Cech is clearly incapable of playing the ball out from the back

Cech is one of the most respected goalkeepers of all time and arguably the best keeper to ever play in the Premier League.

Unfortunately, his career is slowly declining as the years go by. The saying “not getting any younger” pertains to the Czech international perfectly. In the years Cech was playing in his prime with Chelsea, the man between the sticks being a good passer of the ball and having the ability to shrug off high-pressing attackers was not as much of a necessity as it is now.

The modern day keeper is expected to be just as good with their feet as they are with their hands. Cech has reached a point in his career where it is essentially pointless to try to teach him new ways of playing. Despite his legendary status, it seems as though his illustriously successful career is coming to a close.

Emery will take time to better understand his squad, because lets not forget, he genuinely just met them and does not understand all of their specialties and weak points as of yet.

The Spaniard is the right man to bring Arsenal back where they belong, the very top. It will just take time and patience to do so.