Arsenal: Unai Emery sacking talk utterly ridiculous

There is some talk among the Arsenal fan base that Unai Emery should be sacked at the end of the season. Any such suggestion is absolutely ridiculous.

Unai Emery was handed the second-most difficult job in the recent history of football: succeeding Arsene Wenger at Arsenal — succeeding Sir Alex Ferguson is the first, for those interested. Handed little money, a club in disarray, and a squad in serious need of some sprucing up, all while replacing the most powerful manager in world football, Emery was always going to be on the back foot.

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Nearly a year into the job, some opinions are beginning to be formed regarding Emery’s managerial qualities. What are his tactics like? How does he speak with the media? Have the new signings integrated nicely into the squad? Are the Wengerian vulnerabilities being addressed?

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These are the kind of questions that can now be better answered with a season’s worth of evidence. But to think that any true analysis of Emery’s coaching abilities could now be conducted is utterly naive, not just because of the small sample size but the context in which his job has been undertaken.

Emery inherited a broken squad. No wingers, unconvincing centre-halves, a starting goalkeeper who was close to retirement and unreliable, and a swathe of overpaid, underperforming, seemingly disinterested dead wood that needed to be rid of — and still does.

He was then handed a little over £50 million to spend on this undermanned squad. With that, he signed just one player for more than £20 million, such were the financial limitations and the number of needs. Stephan Lichtsteiner was acquired as a reserve right-back almost entirely because he was free and very little to do with his actual ability.

To add to his difficulties, Emery was not allowed to make any permanent signings in the January transfer window, despite painfully obvious needs, and is competing in the most competitive Premier League season of all time with two teams topping 90 points and a seventh-through-tenth slate of opponents that are extremely tough outs.

And with this, Emery has led his team to what will likely be a fifth-place finish and Europa League final. Has his first season been perfect? No. He has made some serious tactical errors in the past two weeks that have squandered the terrific position he put his team in. There are some man-management curiosities. The Denis Suarez signing casts doubt over his efficacy in the transfer market.

Nevertheless, to think that this job merits a sacking is utterly ridiculous. From the squad that he inherited, the resources that he was handed to invest, the culture that he is attempting to overthrow, Emery had an impossible task to satisfy all if they are only going to give him a season, as some Arsenal fans are shouting for.

Does this mean that Emery is the long-term solution to succeed Wenger? No. It does not. But it does mean that you cannot rule that possibility out, which is what sacking him would say. Any talk of firing Emery is utterly, utterly stupid.