Unai Emery the perfect candidate to aggravate Arsenal title woes

The script could hardly be written better.

After months of exquisite football and top-spot occupation had emboldened fans to dream of title glory, the Arsenal challenge is now threatening to derail and may receive another blow this weekend as we travel to Villa Park for a meeting with our former head coach Unai Emery.

The Spaniard has spoken respectfully about Arsenal since departing in 2019 and subsequent success with Villarreal, alongside a hitherto strong Premier League return, exemplifies his sharp recovery from an acrimonious north London exit. However, a lack of hierarchical support at tough moments and limited transfer authority greatly contributed to Emery’s Emirates downfall and he will therefore be particularly motivated to get one over his one-time employers on Saturday.

Will Unai Emery deal a fresh blow to Arsenal’s title dreams in the Premier League this weekend?   

As was the case at Everton a fortnight ago, one way our hosts can hurt us is through the implementation of a well-drilled 4-5-1 system without the ball. Emery prioritises organisation and compactness in a mid-block structure that engages with opponents as they move up the field, with advanced fullbacks leaving little room for wide progression and a heavy midfield presence helping Villa to win the ball back in central areas.

Positional discipline also accentuates the Villans’ offensive threat as short distances between midfield and defence allow them to compact quickly and counter-press when possession is lost, ensuring they always have significant numbers in place to exploit any turnovers in the opposition’s half.

In addition, varied approach play means Villa are happy to go route one towards Ollie Watkins and use his pace to capitalise on any space behind the defensive line, while Emi Buendia and Jacob Ramsey are both capable of line-breaking carries that can leave backlines scrambling or even force them to commit and potentially vacate space for other forwards.

Arsenal are equipped to nullify this danger as Saliba and Gabriel remain formidable figures despite recent form and certainly have the speed to shut down the Villa attack. Elsewhere, the Gunners boast many creative players capable of passing between the lines and are among the best in the division at pressing from the front, which should make the hosts’ build-up efforts very difficult to pull off.

Emery has already bested Mikel Arteta on the European stage before and his dogged, pragmatic style could create the perfect storm for his former club as they try to bounce back from their midweek disappointment.

This game perhaps resembles a cup final for Arsenal, and in that sense, Emery would be just the man to compound our current misery.