Arsenal: 10 things we learned about Unai Emery in his first year

7. He’s meticulous

This became rather obvious in the interview process. Like I said, he wasn’t a frontrunner for the job. His name was hanging out in the suburbs, but nothing seemed to point towards him getting the job until the interviews started.

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That’s when Unai Emery supposedly showed up with a dossier on how to use each individual player on the squad, focusing on Ainsley Maitland-Niles in particular, who Arsene Wenger had struggled to work into his first-team picture.

All season long, we saw just how meticulous Emery continued to be. And not just with Ainsley Maitland-Niles who, no surprises, had his best year ever with Arsenal Football Club.

On the sidelines, Emery could be found directing his troops with intense hand signals. In press conferences, he spoke openly about tactics and what did and didn’t go right. He had a very specific plan for each and every opponent and that came from meticulous planning. And while it didn’t always work out… well, we’ll save that point for the next slide.