Arsenal fans were warned that things wouldn’t instantly change for the better once Arsene Wenger walked away from the Emirates Stadium.

Spanish coach Unai Emery has been tasked with the tough job in trying to make Arsenal great again, that sounds catchy right?

But the new boss is going to need time, more than just one summer, to change things at the Gunners.

There’s still a staleness in the squad, that has carried over from the Wenger era.

Yet Emery has made some subtle (and some not so subtle) changes to the team that could move the club in the right direction given time.

Clearly he wants his keepers to be comfortable with the ball at their feet and veteran Petr Cech is trying to get used to that method.

Unai also likes to see his central defenders receive the ball from deep positions when it come to goal kicks. Plus he likes the defence to play with a high line.

He also seems to prefer his team to be more compact when they’re not in possession and have a bit more structure to them than they did in Wenger’s last years at the club.

Don’t get me wrong the application of these new ideas isn’t there yet and they still look vulnerable at the back, especially against pace, but again the process will take time.

It won’t happen over night, that players who aren’t used to structure aren’t going to suddenly be balanced and holding certain lines and positions. Emery has to work on getting certain stars to get out of their comfort zone, that they’ve been in during the last few seasons.

It also looks like the new coach is keen to play with two holding midfielders but two that can pass the ball as well as break up play.

In the game against Chelsea this past weekend, The Gunners also showed character in getting back into the game. They scored twice and really should have had at least two more. That shows that there is hunger within the team and that they can create good chances against other potential top four sides.

When you look at Emery’s starting line-ups that played in the opening two games only two of the five new signings have started.

Sokratis comes straight in because Laurent Koscielny is injured and Unai isn’t blessed with strength in depth in that area.

Emery was also keen to give young midfielder Matteo Guendouzi a chance to get early exposure in the Gunners first team. The French youngster has impressed and could be a gem of a signing for the club.

Now people will say that Unai Emery doesn’t want to make too many changes right at the start of his maiden campaign and others will say he’s giving the established players a chance to prove themselves.

I wonder if he could have another reason in letting Lucas Torreira, Bernd Leno and Stephan Lichtsteiner sit out these opening two encounters.

Could he be protecting the new boys from these early defeats?

It was always going to be a tough task to take on Man City and Chelsea in your opening two games, maybe it’s better having these three on the bench assessing the English game and seeing just what’s needed to improve the side once they get the opportunity.

You’ve got to believe that Torreira and Leno are longterm purchases that will be given their opportunity at some point this season. West Ham United at home could be the right time for them.

I’d be happy if that were certainly the case regarding Torreira as once again Granit Xhaka has struggled to prove his worth to the team. In his two starts this campaign the Swiss international has been booked twice and then hooked twice.

I’d also like to see the new Gunners gaffer give the partnership of Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang a chance to shine, if that means dropping either Mesut Ozil or Henrikh Mkhitaryan then so be it. The two lethal strikers up-top would give Arsenal a better chance of scoring more goals.

Ultimately the Arsenal players have to buy into Unai Emery’s ideas and if they don’t then the board have to back the manager and get rid of the talent that’s not pulling their weight. They might be on the end of some painful results this season but hopefully their performances will show signs of improvement.

In that regard, the fans might have to suck it up and see some stinkers but in the bigger picture it might take Emery two or three transfer windows before he gets to the stage were he’s built a team that can once again break into the Top Four and challenge for trophies.

The man himself has warned that it’s going to take time:

“Manchester City are in their third year with Guardiola, building one team with security, good players and great stability, playing like they want.

“We are starting.”

Hopefully he gets that time!

Posted on August 21st, 2018 by scott
Filed under: Article