Arsenal and Jose Mourinho: Do not even think about it

Arsenal have reportedly made contact with Jose Mourinho regarding the potential of taking over from Unai Emery. They should not even think about it. It would be an utterly terrible idea.

Arsenal head coach Unai Emery is coming under increasing pressure. He is not doing a very good job and fans are beginning to ask serious questions regarding his role as manager.

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The form is not positive, whatsoever. He has led his team to just two wins from their last nine Premier League games. They are yet to win a league game by more than one goal all season long. They have just one point from matches against Sheffield United, Crystal Palace and Wolves since the international break. Should they lose to Leicester City next weekend, Arsenal could be nine points off the top-four pace. Seemingly, change is needed.

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But what that change should be is a little more difficult to determine. While sacking Emery now seems like the smart move for the club to make, as is ever the case with firing a manager, getting rid is the easy bit. The part of the process that actually enacts a positive change on the club is subsequently hiring the right man for the job. Given that Emery was the club’s choice to succeed Arsene Wenger, you may have to question their wisdom.

One name that has surfaced as a potential Emery successor is one Jose Mourinho. After being fired by Manchester United a little under a year ago, the self-appointed ‘Special One’ has been out of management, working as a pundit for Sky Sports this season. But Mourinho is reportedly keen to return to elite management, especially in England, and Arsenal are reportedly considering the possibility of hiring him as Emery’s replacement.

Quite frankly, they should not even be considering Mourinho. And there are two equally poignant, relevant and valid reasons why: 1) He is not a very good manager and has proven to be unable to implement a long-term, continuous process at a club; 2) He is an egotistical, obnoxious, horrible individual, who lacks class, dignity and respect.

The first reason is purely a footballing one. Mourinho’s defensive tactics have been exposed, his lack of identity exploited by more advanced coaches, and his reliance on spending and short-term injection making him a far from ideal fit in north London. Arsenal need a philosophy-instilling, long-term leader. Mourinho is none of those things.

But the second, for me, is more important. While every football club will claim to have class and honour and Arsenal fans’ protestations that their club do it the right way are a little empty and vain, one of the admirable characteristics of Emery is that he is a self-aware, humble, endearing individual. He might not be a very good football coach, but he is a good man. And I like to support people who are good — this is why Arsene Wenger was given so much time. People liked him.

Mourinho, on the other hand, is not an individual I can support. He is arrogant, self-fulfilling, abrasive, rude, ignorant of others, and utterly egotistical. He is not the type of individual that fans want to cheer for — and he is not the type of individual who should be leading Arsenal, either.

At this stage, sacking Emery is probably the right move. But ridding of a manager is only half the job. You then have to hire the right replacement, and if the Gunners are considering Mourinho as has been reported, they would be failing emphatically.