Back in May of this year, Arsenal announced Unai Emery as the man to take over from Arsene Wenger as their new manager.
Frenchman Wenger brought his 22-year stint in charge of the North London giants to an end in the summer after a testing few years at the helm, albeit he did win three Premier League titles and indeed seven FA Cup crowns during an ultimately successful time with the Gunners.
Yet it is up to Spaniard Emery, formerly of Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain, to take the club forward, with his announcement as Wenger’s successor earlier this year stimulating a very positive reaction from plenty of Arsenal fans on Twitter…
Quadruple incoming
— RicardoAFC (@ItzDatGuy420) May 23, 2018
Think this is a great appointment. Proven winner, good at developing players and sounds like he’s a disciplinarian, which we need. With no CL next season and if romours are to be believed not a lot of money for transfers we’ve done well to get someone this good. #WelcomeUnai
— Tim Penberthy-Hutchings (@TimPenHutch) May 23, 2018
#WelcomeUnai massive welcome to THE Arsenal @UnaiEmery_ . Excited for the future. Lets get the fans back connecting with the club again with our football. Lets get competing again. Need a new goalie 2 defenders and a midfielder. And get jack and aaron signed up ! #coyg #gooner
— deano (@deanobaby89) May 23, 2018
Excited for the start of the season for the first time in a long while! #WelcomeUnai
— Ryan Tatham (@tatham91) May 23, 2018
Welcome to Arsenal Unai! This is indeed the beginning of a new era, proud to be a gooner.
— abiodun yusuf (@aberayu87) May 23, 2018
Unai Emery’s Red army going to surprise everyone next season. BELIEVE! #COYG
— LTArsenal™️ (@ltarsenal) May 23, 2018
Gd appointment happy with this now time to sort the squad out
— Charley (@charleypugh) May 23, 2018
Welcome boss @UnaiEmery_ Glad to have you here. #WelcomeUnai
— Never say Never (@Derek_Walcott) May 23, 2018
And with the Gunners certainly heading in the right direction under the 47-year-old, and showing traits of an Arsenal side that haven’t always been seen in recent years, those supporters cooing over the board’s big decision have been treated to something of a masterstroke.
Ultimately, it was always going to be a tough job for anyone to come in and succeed Wenger – one only had to look at Manchester United’s succession to Sir Alex Ferguson to underline the enormity of the task in hand.
And with defeats in each of his opening two games, albeit against Manchester City and Chelsea, Emery certainly didn’t make the best of starts to life in North London, although the 3-2 loss to the latter definitely encompassed many positive signs.
And the Gunners have since taken that into their remarkable 17-match unbeaten run in all competitions, what with Emery’s men winning eight of their last 11 Premier League matches, alongside victories in the Europa League and Carabao Cup.
And they have done so in an exciting and attack-minded way in scoring 28 goals in their 13 league games this term, with leaders City the only side to have netted more (40) – thus, things appear to be falling into place for the new Arsenal manager.
What’s more, they appear to have developed a steely resolve and resilience that, again, hasn’t always been obvious in years gone by – of the eight league games they have won since August, three of them have been by the odd goal, while two others have seen them come from behind to get the three points.
Yes, some will point to the lack of clean sheets as indicative of their continued defensive vulnerabilities, which were evident throughout Wenger’s last few years in charge, but in terms of improving Arsenal from last season, Emery can certainly say he’s done that.
And the 1-1 draw with Liverpool earlier this month was perhaps the biggest indication of such improvement, as while their winning league run prior to that was impressive, many felt that a clash with a fellow top six side was needed to see exactly where Arsenal are at – and the Gunners produced a fine display to deservedly earn a point from their meeting with the Reds.
As such, there were plenty of Arsenal fans excited by the 47-year-old’s appointment back in May, and with his first few months having come and gone, they will surely remain optimistic about the future of the Gunners under the Spaniard’s reign – it’s a decision the board appear to have got absolutely spot on.
Arsenal fans… what do you think? Let us know!
