Is It Time To Question Emery? by Dan Smith
When I predicted we would lose in the FA Cup I was accused by one reader of, “if you were a true Gooner you never say we will lose”. The same happened when I guessed we would be defeated at Liverpool and West Ham. This article is not to say I was right, predictions are just that, one person’s opinion based on their knowledge of the game. I’m no less a Gooner just because I write what I feel. Saying there is nothing wrong with your club makes you no less loyal, something I expect from a 12-year-old who can’t bear to hear there’s any issues at the Emirates.
I would love to to be able to type weekly that we will win the title under Stan Kroenke, so don’t think it doesn’t hurt to have lost my faith in the Gunners. Only by voicing our concerns, hoping they will be heard, will it ever change. For example, I always judged Unai Emery as being a cheap option rather than an appointment to make us champions. In big Champions League nights he was tactically naive, which is why he wasn’t going to get a new deal at PSG. Yet in the summer, it was taboo to say he wasn’t good enough, even though I heard very few Arsenal fans last season saying they want him to replace Arsene Wenger?
Then during a 22 unbeaten run which led to 5th I dared question why we were showing off, making out Emery had done something Wenger couldn’t, by …. drawing with Liverpool at home. Watch Arsenal Fan TV to remind yourself how cringy we acted. Some fans even made history up. For example; Wenger never would have taken the Europa League seriously unlike our new boss (Wenger also won his group …. With more points)
So, is it now okay to criticize Emery? Not call for his head or put him under pressure, just point out when he’s culpable. At Anfield it was our defence at fault, at the London Stadium it was the players attitude – but the reason we are out of the FA Cup? 100 percent Emery.
I said the Spaniard out-thought Sarri last weekend, but it’s only right to point out when the opposite happens. The second half on Friday was the same movie we seen for over a decade. Us chasing an equaliser, too many passes, searching for the perfect goal, before being hit on the counter. Naiveté we seen a hundred times in this fixture.
Arsene Wenger would be outsmarted by a Sir Alex Ferguson or Jose Mourinho, leading some to insist age had made him stubborn. Emery on the other hand was up against a rookie manager, a novice at this level. A manager whose only success was in Norway getting the better of a guy who’s worked in various big Leagues. During this bad run he insists Iwobi is more creative then Ozil, and that we didn’t need to keep Ramsey.
We are 5th, out of both cups with only the Europa League to fight for. You know; exactly the same scenario which led some Arsenal fans to verbally abuse the greatest manager in our history. How long can you keep saying Emery inherited a mess?
Things change yet always stay the same.
Dan Smith