What have we learnt from the pre-season? by DS
The system
Emery has experimented with a few different formations (we have seen them try 3 at the back and even a 4-4-2) although he seems to prefer a 4-2-3-1. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more regular changes to our formation from week to week or even changes during matches – this was not common from Wenger. He seems to like having one very deep-lying play-maker so it almost becomes a 4-1-4-1. Guendouzi has done particularly well in that role; He is very confident on the ball and his distribution has been fantastic (although he won’t get that much time on the ball in the competitive premier league matches!). Arsenal have shown a dedication to playing the ball out from the back on the ground, with goal-keepers rarely going long. Centre backs go very wide, fullbacks get high and the central midfielders drop in to get the ball from goal-kicks on the half turn. At times it has looked impressive as we have broken a press with one or two clever passes, allowing us to get into great attacking positions. Clearly Emery has worked on co-ordinating these movements/passes in training, however, we have occasionally gotten ourselves into trouble and have turned the ball over in very dangerous positions.
We have also shown a willingness to press high up the field when we don’t have possession. With the pace we have in our forward line we have the ability to put the opposition defenders under a lot of pressure which can lead to turn-overs. But do we have the pace in our backline to play with such a high line?
The personnel
It is hard to gauge if Emery has a clear picture of our best starting 11. Leno will probably start ahead of Cech although Cech was brilliant against Chelsea. I suppose the centre-back pairing will be Mustafi and Sokratis but he has had a close look at all our defenders. Holding has made me the most nervous when we have tried to play the ball out from the back and while Mavropanos has great physical attributes he lacks a bit of experience at this stage. Chambers has perhaps impressed the most – comfortable on the ball and fairly assured in his defending.
There is competition for places in the fullback positions. Lichtsteiner offers experience and consistency whilst Bellerin offers pace and creativity so it will be interesting to see how that plays out in the next few weeks. It seems Maitland-Niles will start at leftback, as there are injuries to Monreal and Kolasinac.
One would think that Xhaka and Torreira would be the starting central midfield combination. They have joined the squad late because of their world cup exploits over the summer and were only involved in one preseason match, so maybe the impressive Guendouzi will be given a chance. Ramsey has picked up a minor injury and might be distracted by his ongoing contract negotiations. Ozil has mainly been used as a wide forward rather than a central number 10, and he has looked pretty good. In the last match against Lazio, Mkhitaryan impressed when he came off the bench and played in a deeper, more central role than what he is usually asked to do.
Emery has tried every combination imaginable in the forward line. I suppose the big question is whether he will start Aubameyang and Lacazette, with Auba playing off the left or whether he plays Auba through the middle with Mkhi and Ozil on either side. Iwobi has shown glimpses of brilliance and this might be a breakthrough year for him.
It has been a pleasure watching some of our youngsters but I suspect they will mainly be used in cup competitions. I would love to see a few of them go on loan to get more regular first team matches.
Conclusions
I think the biggest concerns still revolve around our back line. The jury is still out on Sokratis. He has been an integral part of a very successful Dortmund side and he offers experience and steel. But he has looked cumbersome, slow and not particularly comfortable on the ball. If we are going to persist with playing the ball out from the back one might question the logic of this signing as Sokratis is not the best at bringing the ball out. The lack of pace in our backline is also concerning if we are going to play with such a high line as we have been with the pressing game in pre-season. Defending set-pieces and high balls into the box seems to be a perennial problem and there were no signs that this has been addressed in pre-season. I know we were close to signing the young centre-back Çağlar Söyüncü who is more mobile and a more natural ball-playing centre-back, he might have been the better option but let’s hope Sokratis can settle in quickly.
Whilst there are genuine concerns, it has to be said that the change of manager has freshened things up and some players seem to have a new lease of life. The pre-season results have been great and we have played some exciting football. The pre-season has probably put us in a better position than some of our competitors, we made our signings early and we had less players away at the world cup than some of our opponents. This has given us more time to work on our combinations and patterns of play, and I’m looking forward to seeing us get off to a flyer.
Declan
For me it is ‘Don’t knowism’ and ‘hopeism’. But then its that every season start.
Oh yeah-What was the post about?How you went out with Dembele and his Agent for dinner last night to finalise the terms of his new contract at Arsenal.
well im impressed on hw we performed in out preseason games most especially our performance against Chelsea. however, I’m still concern about our wing attacks and our defence. im sure all that will be sorted out by our head coach. but I’m impressed on the way we move the ball forward rather than side pass and no intent to cut in with through pass.
To all Nigerians on here its quite unfortunate that some of you insult others here in your mother tongue you are far away from civilization. Nigeria is the capital city of corruption in the world whereby drug lords and terrorist control the government. And as if this is not enough witchcraft is real in Nigeria, I pity some of you who can even afford to be racist.If the admin is not going to tame some of you the we can as well rename the site to justnigerianarse
My previous boss is Nigerian, he’s actually a really nice guy (apart from being a United supporter!) Told me about lots of things that go on over there.. bit of an eye opener!! If I was to repeat it all, Pat would ban me for sure!!!
Looking forward to City thrashing Chelsea later ?
I am starting by deleting every single comment that is not about football or Arsenal. This is not a political or racist website.
We are all Gooners- show some respect
Good stuff just takes away from why we come on here….
Well said. I have asked the Admin to do the same, IN AN EMAIL QUITE A WHILE AGO and by replying to his own post which said he would do likewise. I hope he means his threat to remove any post alleging racism and have told him so. Moving swifly on, I thought this article was well thought through and sensibly written. It is clear that at last we have a manager who has great attention to detail and one who will not toilerate slackness and half hearted play. That is an enormous step forward and a COMPLETE CHANGE from last seasons(many of them). Wherever we finish, i now think the days of being embarressed by the feeble effort in away games are behind us. I have little doubt the ground will once again be full and that the club can now issue an accurate crowd figure , instead of the risible lies they put out last season on attendance numbers, in a vain effort to conceal the truth about the vast fans campaign that brought Wenger down.
Jon my friend! What excites me are the tactics tactics tactics! In game formation changes, different player combinations, and the competition! No more favoritism, or passengers!
I’ve seen more from the youngsters this preseason that 2 years under Wenger. Point being, to me seemed Wenger more interested in forcing Ramsey in RW than developing Reis, Jeff, etc. Also moving Monreal to CB instead of developing Chambers.
Heading in the right direction, results will follow in time.
@counsel. and the others. While I don’t know what and can’t see what Chiza has posted and not able to comment on it I think it’s a bit sad that despite the fact that we are all part of the arsenal family from different parts of the world( I have been following arsenal for 25 yrs) we chose to make statements that are untrue, inflammatory and politically offensive to a whole group of people. One person doesn’t represent a whole group. The country is not in a good shape( there are so many like that) but saying it is run by drug barons and terrorists is untrue and wrong. I guess despite us being part of the ‘arsenal family’ somethings do not change
Agreed ,if the player isn’t good enough he doesn’t play ,auba is Gabon , does that mean we don’t want him to play either because he’s African , I don’t care where a player is from like most normal fans on here ,I wouldn’t even care if we had no English players in the squad .i just want to see the best team
And so say , if not all, then certainly 99% of us. If we sign Martians, then as long as they have top ability and great passion for our club, that’s fine by me. But then I AM AMONG THE 99%, THANK GOD!
To all Nigerians here…. First of all, how many Nigerians actually commented on that Thread by Chiza? @counsel- have you ever been to Nigeria before? Admin, if you don’t regulate what people post here, some will probably not come to this site again. All this is doing is creating is hatred and not love for the club all of us love and cherish.
Hey. There were hundreds of comments and I deleted them!
No racism no politics… Just arsenal..
Well Counsel just said Nigeria is run by criminals and drug barons and even mentioned witchcraft somewhere along the line yet you allowed his comment even though it is not football related. I’m a Nigerian and I’m proud to be and I’m not going to hide because some morons are mid representing us. You can’t choose where you are from ( your root ) just like you can’t choose your parents. @ Counsel with that derogatory comment of yours i fail to see you are different from the morons you are calling out.
Pat, This is both sad( that it happened) and heartening(that you banned them) to read. I am very concerned at much of the low class language and filth on here from a certain number of people who seem to want to ruin your site for decent people. Could you write an article of your own ,making this point in strong terms that disgusting and dirty language and allegations of racism in particular from people from a certain country, will not be tolerated and those posing such tripe will be banned forthwith. I urge you to do thsi now please. STRONG FOOTBALL OPINIONS, DECENTLY MADE ARE GOOD BUT FILTH AND RACISM ACCUSATIONS ARE FORBIDDEN. PLEASE!!!
Did you see the comment by cousel ? you do not think that needs to be brought down ? he practically insulted the nation Nigeria
Admin what do you have to say about this comment? An insult to an entire nation, and I believe a lot of you expect her people to just watch.
Counsel, for these worlds you used, you have shown to a great extent that you are even beneath the people you talked about wisdom-wise. I’m not sorry to say.
You talked about Nigeria being the capital of corruption. Pls recall that Nigeria was colonized by Britain. So be careful, else one might begin to wonder how this once great nation was mentored into a corrupt entity.
SMH!
@Chiza – if you were in anyway “considerate” in what you’d written perhaps you could avoid being censored, but to avoid disappointment produce a blog yourself maybe call it the “Daily Goofball?”.
Chiza you’re are just a caveman who is enjoying the internet era,but you can’t give anyone here insight about transfer forget it
We just need our DEFENCE. It is the only thing that is still making me so NERVOUS. We just look as Suspect at the Back like we were under Wenger. But Midfield and Attack i am very optimistic. We just need to give Unai and these players time and support as long as they are showing progress in there approach.
Can’t get worse than it was under wenger surely..
I am optimistic but also apprehensive at the same time. We have been emotionally abused and drained by wengers incompetence in his later years. Lol
laughable comment “immotionally drained by Wenger incompetence” Can an incompetent manager win the league unbeaten, which evidence or statistics do you have to back your claim that Emery is better than wenger
Hey wenger’s pie licker… Do you still drink milk from a bottle like a baby, like you used to when you were an infant?
I guess you might well do…
But my point is when you grow up you change the way you do things.. I hope you dont still pee and poop in your nappies..
Similarly wenger was great when he became the positive factor for the baby(arsenal) while it was growing.. He took great care…fed the baby regularly…changed the diapers often and gave his nipple to bite on even after he stopped lactating.
But the baby now is 20+ year old…and yet he was still offering breast milk, making the 20+ year old wear a diaper , not only the 20year old is embarrassed but also his friends and all the world around him is embarrassed.
But wenger showed his middle finger.
That was the problem always…it is not about him being a winner in his early years…but him being a loser for more years than he was a winner.
People can chose to respect him coz of what he did in his early arsenal years…
But i will not and can not respect him ever…
Coz of 2 things…
1. He caused me more pain than the happiness he gave.. His successfull years were 10…but his non succesfull were 12…people may call the recent FA cups a success but that was always papering over the cracks. People say he was not supported by Kroenke etc…i agree he was not supported… Then he should have stood out for the club he claims to be his love..he could have revolted…and some say he did not revolt coz if he did so then the club’s image will be spoiled etc…in that case He could have asked the board to support him in transfers or else he would quit and let all the fans know how shitty the owners were. Then probably he could have waited for 2 or 3 years to see if the owners cared at all and then let the supporters know the real situation. But he chose to keep mum for 10+ years which eventually spoiled the club’s reputation(if you dont think so…then just go ask a watford fan/or any other midtable team fan which away match is he most worried about, arsenal or liverpool or chelse or city or utd ) . We arsenal fans love to think we are the best…me included… but i only realised after interacting with manay fans that we are not even considered as competion by many liverpool/city/utd fans.
2. Simple.. His pain causing years were more recent which makes my feeling about him more relevant. If his 22 years were made upside down.. i.e. his first 12 years being dissapointing and his last 10 brings us the PL titles, doubles, invincibles,CL finalists etc then i would have probably been a die hard wenger fan.
3. (i know i said only 2, but consider this as a bonus point) How irresponsible can he be , that now he thinks his biggest mistake in his career might be staying too long at arsenal? I mean he realised that now? He needs to realise that Its not always about him.. It is millions of peoples time that he have wasted and thier money and support he shat on.
And lastly all arsene pie lickers also need to know thatits not just arsenal that has benefitted in this relationship… he also made a life out of Arsenal FC… If he were left untouched at nagoya grampus eight in japan… Would he be sitting in front of a camera and give his opinion on the world cup matches? Would he be earming some of the best wages in the country?
Would he be respected all across the world?
So stop worshipping him …and realise that he destroyed us more in the last 10-12 years than he caused excitement in us for the first 10 years.
Shekar, Broadly speaking -and apart from your puerile language, ” pee and poop” and “pie lickers” etc., which decent people do not use in a public forum – I agree with the broad thrust of how you perceive Wenger’s 22 years. Just 3 FA cups in his last 12 years and no serious title challenge since 2007-8 were way below par for a club of our standing and but for the decade of glory earlier, would and should have led to the sack far sooner by any club with a proper board and proper owner. So many were chained in mental thrall to the ten years of glory, that it took another eleven or twelve for the overwhelming majority to FINALLY see how much damage he was doing. I had wanted him out for a full decade but was whistling in the dark and among very few who agreed with me for most of that tormenting decade. Frankly, he had stopped doing the daily job that he was paid to do. There was no evidence whatever of ANY defensive nous, defensive coaching, defensive organisation nor any serious attempt to fill the decade long cavernous gap at DM. There was little, if any, serious attempt to change proven failed methods and even the reputation we once had for being attractive to watch had long become a ridiculous joke. But my point to you is this: If you try ,as you have done, to make a good point with serious and correct criticism , you will repel many people who might privately agree with you when you write in the filthy way you have done. I was chary of writing this post of agreement with your main point, simply because , like all decent minded people, I found some of your language repellent and disgusting. I vowed to only agree, IN A PUBLIC FORUM, if I also made this profoundly important point to you. And to any others who mistakenly think it clever to use filthy language. It is not clever. It is childish, dirty and low class. I have said my piece.
Ok jon…i have taken your advice amd i will keep it in my mind not to write in a filthy languange in future.
But just to justify why i had to write in such language…i was and am constantly fed up with people like counsel,uchman who constantly try to derail the long craving positivity created by the manager change after decade of hardship. I wonder if some people here want emery to fail so badly just so they could say “told you, carefull what you wish for”… They were willing to give arsene another year after 12 years of dissapointment but they cant fathom the thought of giving emery a year at the least.
Though i realise that the language was unwarranted…i still wonder if they deserve such filthy language coz they are spreading unwarranted negativity around the club that too finally when the majority of the fanbase is united for once and excited about the new season.
Unai’s Seville and PSG teams were a little suspect in defence. PSG from midfield and forward they were hard to get past but when you did the defence could be got at, a little like Barcelona but not quite as bad. Seville were a very good attacking team, but end to end exactly the type we used to love playing. All teams who like possession and heavy fire power will leave enough space for it to hurt them. So far we haven’t been all out attack but we’ve been a little bit end to end ..v PSG v Lazio and v Chelsea. We’re man marking now but its when a move breaks down is when man marking wont help. I get the impression that some fans expect all our old troubles to disappear, its gonna take time people, we need a few more windows at least. But even after all the improvement if we make it that far, you still need to realize how a ball playing team will always have certain soft spots whether it be timing, shape, or just one lapse error. Mourinho has defending locked down, but he has weaknesses one of them is losing great players who cannot play shackled up for 70 – 80 odd minutes, must be ultra consistent finishers too or else Mourinho falls short. All teams have their weaknesses.
Just wondered why the “Lol”? . Surely no need, as you spoke the tragic, not comic truth, so correctly, as countless thousands of empty season tickets holders so clearly agreed!
Getting Torreira is a huge step in the right direction. Weve needed a quality DM for ages. Guendouzi is also an excellent and he is only 19. If he is this good and mature at 19 then imagine how good he will be with a few more years experience.
Im fine with Lichtsteiner and Leno. Not too keen on Sokratis.
However, I feel oportunities were missed this summer. I feel we need:
1. An upgrade quality centre back
2. A quality winger
3. An upgrade to Xhaka/Ramsey
The Centre Back situation especially worries me. The Top 5 teams all have bettee quality centre backs in my opinion
We should have sold a few players to fund the signings. We could even have sold good players to get a top player. But def sell players of average quality. Possible sales for better signings ie Welbeck, Jenkinson, Campbell, Perez, Elneny, Mustafi, Ramsey etc
Too my knowledge these are the players gone OUT this summer:
Akpom sold (probably around £2 mil)
Wilshere contract end
Cazorla contract end
Macey on loan
Asano on loan
I think the lack of quality on the bench will hurt us in the Long run if we get lots of injuries. And we are very close to being a Top 4 team again. Im still looking forward to this season though.
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This is justarsenal.com….
Please let’s respect each other and enjoy the new season.
Wenger has gone… We have a new manager in Emery. Let’s support the team and wish them well instead of this racial talk and abuse. Remember football is a game that brings everyone together.
One game, football without violence.
Let us apologize to each other and move on.
Thanks!
totally…with a strengthened defense….top 3 is a guarantee
Anyway, back to the Arsenal………
I think Guendouzi should partner Torreira.
I’d start Lichrsteiner over Bellerin.
I’d play Chambers and Mustafi together.
Elneny as Ramsey is injured.
Nelso, Laca and Auba up front.
Hi Su, I’d prefer a nil nil draw with lots of injuries and City to edge it on penalties ?
Hey Declan! I think your take on the match later sounds much better than mine, I’ll take that ? with Sergio to score the winning penalty!
I think Guendouzi will start for sure, am not sure on Torriera he looked off the pace. Its a new team and he doesn’t speak the language. Not every player fits right in like Guendouzi, he’s confident and has friends already there and even going to parties that other players didn’t seemed invited to. He knew the coach and his staff so its different for Torriera. The Spanish speaking players should try extra hard in helping Torriera fit in. I would choose same swaps as you there Declan but Torriera would be a maybe, we don’t have as much options as some think we do so its a difficult one. City will keep us busy so that’s why I’d go with Elneny too, also he looked best partner next to Guendouzi. I think the fact that CC and Mustafi know each other better than the others is why that would be the smart play, it might not look it after a game but before a game yes that is the wise choice. Am wondering how injured is Ramsey though, at most it looked like a cramp, he was ready to play. I wonder if its precaution more so than anything else, also the fact he hasn’t signed and we may need to sell. Lichsteiner looked unruffled, Bellerin flaps about sometimes but not this dude, positioning in mentally ingrained and he’s a fighter. Pity about Kolasinac, his bruising play could of really helped the fight mentality shine at Arsenal with these two on opposite wings.
I like what I’ve seen so far, we definitely play different from the Wenger era.
If we can sell these players
Welbeck, Perez, Jenkinson, Mustafi, & Campbell
Get Ramsey to sign, if not by Tuesday, sell him as well.
And get in these players
Gbamin, Söyüncü, Nzonzi (if we sell Ramsey) and Dembele
I would be satisfied
What’s wrong with Campbell?? He seems to be a better player than my namesake on the left, a better dribbler and passer than Perez (who has a wicked left foot by the way) and he can play anywhere on the front 3. If nothing else, he is the short term solution to the LW conundrum.
A lot of fans keep calling for impossible transfers (dream players are unlikely to come as it would take astronomical fees to buy them or we’d have to sell players that are hard to shift to fund a move), I think we can work with what we have and Emery can drill the team to act more like a solid unit.
Unfortunately, its not all about you. Its about arsenal
Let’s say we’re recovering the ball a bit better. And let’s say the defense is suspect as always. Maybe Steve Bould is to blame, I don’t know. But we haven’t moved an inch in the right direction in that aspect of the game. SO, I don’t see how in the world can we achieve top 4 with that defending. And we should all come to terms with a fact that a commanding defender won’t arrive this transfer window. So we’re stuck with what we have and what we have can’t give us more than 6th or 5th spot. Unless spuds or CSKA London BOTH have a horrible transfer window, we’ve got a chance at the top 4. Otherwise, it’s bye bye, UCL! I hoped that Emery would manage to change us for the better, but now I’m pretty sure no coach in the world could do much better with the defenders we have. And to think that kroenke’s cash cow for the new LA Rams stadium will pay a proper dime for a commanding defender is beyond insanity. We should be head over heels that we’ve signed Lacca and Auba. I’m pretty sure that the two of them will be the last top top players to sign for the club for a very long time.
That makes no sense, we can only get Europa in your mind. And this is the end of signing a top player like Auba and Laca, but both of them signed on in a Europa season. Mkhitaryan too. If we can sign those players then am sure we’ll get exactly the CB’s we want eventually (if not now). Also we have diamond eye, we might even get them without paying the world class price tags. With enough time Mislintat is gonna find some gems, I don’t think CB’s was ever his strong suit, but we have Bould’s opinion and Raul’s and we’ll have money if it comes to it.
I like your perspective but thought your conclusion a touch too pessimistic. It should be, note , I say SHOULD BE, clear to everyone that with the present squad, which is now not likely to change by window’s close, we are nowhere near title class. To me that is realism , not being pessimistic. Some fans won’t or don’t understand the crucial difference between them. I also think that in my heart of hearts, 5th or 6th is our more probable finish. BUT we DO have a big advantage in having most of our players not tired from the WC and back in training before most of our rivals. That point has a distinct advantage at both ends of the season. I see further trouble brewing and soon overflowing at Old Trafford with Moaninho probably leaving ere long. That will impact on their Prem position. As a keen and professional betting man, I flatter myself(actually I don’t flatter, but am a good judge) that I have a reallistic and non biased view of all probable outcomes. I was saying Wenger was certain to be removed long before anyone much took this , to me, certainty, seriously. I made a decent sum of money by betting on it over many months prior to him going. I say this not to gloat but to show that I assess likely happenings astutely and without letting my heart rule my head. Indeed I use the foolish “heart over head merchants” to make money from on various places. SO, I PRIZE REALISM , AT LEAST PERSONALLY. I give us a 35% chance of a top four finish , all factors being fully assessed and obviously hope we make it. I have more optimism about winning The Europa under Emery and will take up any odds that are in our favour and layable( to hedge, by then betting against, having first bet on the win). It is comparatively rare to see fully explained perspective on here , sadly and I applaud you for writing as you have. I do dissent from your thinking NO other top player will arrive. I believe we will sign two top players , but not til NEXT SUMMER, after Emery has fully shown the extent of his talents, as he will certainly do. MOST IMPORTANTLY OF ALL OUR CLUB NEEDS OUR SUPPORT, MORE NOW THAN EVER.
with the no nonsense *Stephen Lichtsteiner, torreiera, xhaka and tank kolasinac (speedy recovery) in the arsenal fold nobody should be able to accuse us of having a soft underbelly. i sense there’s going to be a lot to admire about how Lichtsteiner goes about his business.
Tank ?
I take back what I said about Lichtsteiner’a age, he did look a beast yesterday!!
despite injury he remains a favorite of mine too – in kolasinac we believe 😀 –
Glad to hear it waal2waal
“Lichtsteiner … he did look a beast” some athletes defy age – he has a competitive edge which some put it down to attitude… whatever… we like him.
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??The players you mention will add some mongrel will to win attitude and under Emery, Arsenal fans won’t have to put up with being monstered by other teams. I want a team that fights for the badge. We can’t help that Arsenal don’t spend, due to Kroenke’s tight fistedness, on the high profile name players, but the players Arsenal do have will now be well coached, disciplined and fight for every point. If nothing else the away form will greatly improve and the points gap will be reduced. COYG!
Nice article Declan, good read. Personally I reckon he’ll go with Cech, he’s in form so I think the manager will go with that. Only thing about Cech is him not collecting the incoming crosses when he has a chance, he leaves it to the defenders and tries to prepare for a shot. If Leno has no mistakes or less than most I should say, then that’s where he can get one up on Cech. Also Cech to me never looks comfortable passing the ball with players near his area, some say he done that well against Che but I thought he looked fairly uncomfortable. I thought Bellerin would have his right back spot to lose like I do with Cech’s situation, but after watching a small bit of Lichtenstein I think he could be our starter. I’m not sure v City and Liv how it will go but Lichsteiner looks like something we do need, which, people have pointed out so far. The pace of our CB area along with Lichsteiner might worry a few people in the big games, but he’s played allot of big games so am not sure. The man to man marking still has allot of room for improvement, not all our players will be great at that stuff, one man loses his duel and it can break down quickly. We’ll see how they go anyway, it’d be great if they could surprize us.
Difference between Emery and Wenger is not just about Transfers and believing/or not in a defensive midfielder. There are Other aspects to being a manager
I hope Emery is also better than Wenger in terms of Tactics, Coaching and Motivation.
Tactically Wenger was very stubborn and rarely changed. Stick with the same formation for long time. He would also play players out of position and played players who didn’t deserve to play.
Hope Emery is more hands on in coaching and doesn’t give as much freedom to players as Wenger did. Hope he gives more direction and advice.
Motivation. Hope Emery gives motivational speeches before and during half time and knows how to get the message across to certain players if necessary. Also hope he can get our players to play together harmoniously like a perfect team, like a well oiled machine. Like Leicester City did. Other than Kante and Mahrez, the playes weren’t world class but they played well together.
These in themselves can make a huge difference.
essentially, the difference between wenger and emery is in approach and also approx 23 years. the former had run out of ideas whilst the latter comes as a breath of fresh air and he has proven track-record in managing a team and task the size of arsenal football club.
By uploading Unai Emery it brings a halt to arrivals coming to arsenal with the ill gotten perception wenger is acquiescent and in some sense resigned to becoming their father-figure. Its not the kind of relationship arsenal need, these players need to be effectively governed and this is what emery can do – show ’em who is governor.
The season hasn’t started and we ate each other’s face the first match will define our season mark my words because unlike wenger unai doesn’t seem like a manager who likes losing a draw is the goal and a win a fantastic outcome
Doe that not remind you of a particular season?
I think we should play three in midfield wish xhaka toreirra and guendouzi. Terreira providing cover for defence while xhaka and guendouzi will serve as left footed and right footed playmaking midfielders. Just my opinion
plz people should spear me thus crap about defence….
I watched other people’s preseason matches And arsenal players did better than many Europe power horse..And I can’t remember conceding more than one goal per match and we scored in all Our matches Just like everyone else We did it also played our own kids….. People should just learn to forget about the previous seasons it over shadows their judgement…..
Let’s wait till the season plays at least half of it’s matches Then we can know if the defence is as poor As you make urself to believe
sign this sign that you think some of the players That the media Links to us are better than what we have give the coach Time to know who fits and who don’t even gadiola in his first season gave the players he met a fair chance in his 1st season before making changes where needed knowing who fits and who doesn’t
@ Nonny I am so glad I have someone like you on here who see things the way I do also.. most fan on here has been brainwashed by the media into thinking Arsenal Is even worst team ever.. all the top coaches that came to England didn’t change there whole first eleven the first season they got there, they gave some players they met at the club a chance and most have improved ( for example sturidge , Klopp didn’t want him whene he first got to Lpool but look at him now and how well he’s perform for them during pre season and all of a sudden he’s wanted again) we need to give Emery/the players some time to work together and improve.. even if we don’t make TOP 4 and so what ? We are already putting too much pressure and expectations on th coach already without even managing the first game of the season
??Nonny and Otunba_007.
COYG!
Cautiously optimistic about the team. I think there are improvements in some areas. I like the fact the Emery is integrating youth in his plans. The team still doesn’t press as a team the way Emery wants them to, and that needs to get better soon. Concerned about how the team responds when pressed hard as CHelsea did in first half. Like Leno starting. I am convinced that Emery will adjust tactics as necessary to give the team a lift as needed.
I’m sorry to digress. Pls, enough of racism on this platform. I’d like the admin to put in measures to screen non arsenal comments. Gooners for life! All the best this season. #inemerywetrust
Main thing I have enjoyed watching is the switch in formations when subs happen, the change in tactics is refreshing and I am now looking forward to seeing how Emery will tweak the team during the game.
its rather too early to start comparing BTW emery and wenger. evaluation of any sort on any player under emery is quite too early cause the league hasn’t started and moreover, we are deemed to be shocked by emery this season. anyway I have a good feeling about this arsenal squad and I look forward to our next victory with emery.
I hope Emery does not feel obliged to play Mustafi and Xhaka because they cost the Club around £70m.From what ive seen they are bang average players neither of whom should be in the starting eleven to face Man City. Unfortunately Socrati s seems on a par with Mustafi and if, as I suspect they are paired together against City, I fear the worst.The centre backs should be Chambers and Mav.
Let’s rock the emirates on Sunday. Get off to a good start against the oil men and go from there.
I am quietly optimistic about our season. Man City will be strong, but it seems near on impossibly to retain the premiership.
Man Utd, think Jose will be put by Christmas and boy does he play a greece in the euros style of football when they won it but it’s Man Utd for gods sake!
Chelsea are on transition and if they lose hazard they are up the creek without a paddle.
The spuds who cares we hate them and I can’t wait to finish above them this season!!
Liverpool. I like Klopp and if they can change their mentality against the so called lesser teams it might be what their fans say every season “it’s our year”!
I look forward to the mighty arsenal being more competetive especially in the big games and Aubameyang outscoring arry Kane!
Up the gunners