Arsenal managed to drop points at Watford despite holding a two goal lead at half-time on Sunday.

The Gunners totally collapsed in the second half as The Hornets pushed to secure themselves a point (BBC Match Report). That dismal second half performance led to plenty of supporters questioning boss Unai Emery and some were even stating it was time to sack the Spaniard:

Unai Emery should be sacked useless manager and bigger bottler than Wenger ever was. Had 100 chances to finish in top 4 last season and can’t even beat Watford after scoring 2 goals.

— INVINCEARSENAL (@INVINCEARSENAL) September 16, 2019

If Arsenal loose this game then Unai Emery should be sacked,,,all this is on him

— Georni M'hoyah (@georni_mhoyah) September 15, 2019

@UnaiEmery_ OUT …. I can’t just tell what he gains from playing from the back??. Confused tactics , annoying substitution. #WATARS . Can he just be sacked .. I am already tired.

— saint kennzy (@KennzySaint) September 15, 2019

While I get some of the fan frustration, I just can’t see any point whatsoever in sacking Emery without giving the manager at least another full season.

We are only in September and the North London side are just two points off last season’s Premier League champions Manchester City, who are lying in second place.

Last term he finished just a point outside the top four positions. They also finished as runners-up in the Europa League.

I’d also like to point out that Watford played well in that second forty-five minutes and really fought for that point.

Emery was always going to have a longterm project on his hands. Former gaffer Arsene Wenger had been at the club for over twenty years and staleness had set in by the time the Frenchman had left the Emirates.

The whole club, as well as the first team, had to be freshened up. In the transfer market in the three they’ve had under Unai, Arsenal have strengthened and in the right areas too.

The team are playing more cohesive football, although I grant you that wasn’t really evident at the weekend. They’ve also looked stronger in the more important games.

Now that’s not to say that improvements can’t be made. They seem to bottle it when it really counts, for instance a win over Watford would’ve taken them into the top three. They also lost that Europa League final!

Some of Emery’s team selections puzzle me, I’m not going to lie. I’m not sure why Granit Xhaka seems undroppable, I’d prefer to see Lucas Torreira get more game time in the midfield.

But we also have to concede that new players are still settling in at The Emirates. I think Kieran Tierney will offer a lot more passion into that back four. I also think Nicolas Pépé will be a complete revelation once he’s gets used to the English game and starts to take his chances. So it’s not easy for Emery to pick his best side at the moment.

Does the short goal kicks annoy me?

No not really, it’s a new trend that everyone’s doing at the moment. It will take some getting used to, just as the pass back rule did in the early 90s. What I would say is that they should be cuter with the whole thing. I’d like to see the full-backs pushing up and giving the goalkeeper a different option and also give the defenders more space to run into.

Is Unai Emery the right man?

I really don’t know. It should be judged on progression and we can’t calculate that until the end of the campaign. If he and his side were to break into the Champions League places or win a trophy, then he will have progressed and he’s got a squad that’s capable of delivering on those goals.

If they can’t get into the top four and slip up too many times then the question should be asked come May.

I think some of the Arsenal support need to understand that there’s no magic wand and that they can’t expect success straight away, no matter the manager. Sacking a manager after every poor result will just lead to more bad results!

Posted on September 17th, 2019 by scott
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