Emery Heading to the Emirates
We have known for some time that Arsene Wenger was going to be leaving Arsenal as the end of this season.
Pressure was mounting on the Frenchman and despite everything Wenger has achieved at the club, his time was up as the Frenchman continued to struggle with the team. While Arsenal fans were sad to see Wenger leave the club, they are eager to see who will come in and hopefully lift the Gunners back into Premier League contention.
Big Names Linked
Many names have been linked with the Arsenal managers job in recent months, with Max Allegri, Mikel Arteta and Thierry Henry being mentioned but one man has stolen a march on them all in the past 24 hours and his name is Unai Emery.
Emery’s name is new to the list of potential candidates and was out at 28/1 with many bookmakers just a few days ago, with Arteta being as short as 1/6 to take over the top job at the Emirates. However, things have changed and as there are strong reports suggesting Emery is going be named the new Arsenal manager ahead of the summer transfer window.
Emery is a Spanish football manager, known to many fans around Europe for his spell at Sevilla, where he led the La Liga club to three consecutive Europa League victories. His time at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan earned Emery the opportunity to manage one of the financial powerhouses of European football, Paris Saint-Germain.
PSG Success Not Enough
In his first year at the club, Emery led Paris Saint-Germain to three trophies, winning the Coupe de France, Coupe de la Ligue and the Trophee des Champions. However, the Ligue 1 title eluded him as Monaco won the French title in 2016/17 and that placed Emery under huge pressure in his second season in charge at the Parc des Princes.
The Spaniard stepped up to the plate, winning the Ligue 1 title with ease but it’s the Champions League Paris Saint-Germain really want and despite being in a good position against Real Madrid, the French club were knocked out in the Round of 16 for the second season running. It was the second time in succession Paris Saint-Germain were eliminated at that stage of the tournament having allowed a 4-0 first leg lead to slip away in the dying moments against Barcelona in 2016/17.
Commenting on the potential appointment, Sky Sports pundit and former Arsenal striker, Alan Smith said, “They’ve gone for the experienced option rather than the left-field. Obviously Mikel Arteta might not have wanted it in the end, but Ivan Gazidis spoke initially about wanting to make a bold and brave appointment. I wouldn’t describe Emery as that.”
Despite Smith’s comments, there is no disputing Emery has a good record as a manager and prior to his spell at Sevilla, Emery led Valencia to three third-place finishes in La Liga. If he can repeat that in his first season in charge at Arsenal, Gunners fans will be very happy.