Unai Emery dropped a very detailed press conference with Elmundo.
He covered many areas and spoke in vivid colour about the league, his troubles, and a little of what he’s trying to do at Arsenal. The hot talking point seems to be his vision of being a chameleon team.
‘It depends. I want us to be a chameleon team, able to play in possession, in static attack against close opponents, or to counterattack. For the first, Özil comes very well, which has the virtue of discovering spaces. For the second, Aubameyang. To the extent that we are able to combine it, we will grow.‘
You can take this one of two ways.
The first way, he’s adopting a Jose Mourinho like approach to the game, nullify the opponent’s strengths and attack from there.
The second way, he could be trying to adopt an NFL like approach where he can be tactically nimble as a game goes on. Pep G has players that are smart enough to switch formations during a game without losing shape or effectiveness.
I think we might be dreaming if we think he’s talking about the second based on what we’ve seen this season. If we’re honest, part of the reason the football is so drab is because he’s a manager more concerned with the other team than building out a distinct style of football of his own. PSG players complained of that, and there were leaks a couple of months ago from Arsenal to that effect.
I think when you read through the interview, you do get the impression that the chip on his shoulder comes from feeling inadequate in the elite of football. He’s constantly having to explain the PSG flop, or why he does things that look small time. This line was interesting.
‘I like to know what others do, how they train and how they relate, and I take what I think of each one, be Guardiola or Mourinho.’
His thirst for knowledge is a compelling asset, but when you’re chasing a vision that mish-mashes the IP of others, you kind of end up with no IP. I think it’s very hard to be the best if you don’t have your own unique vision of how the game should be played. You’re constantly chasing progress by looking at what others are doing. Think what you like about Sarri, but he has a vision of what he wants to do, year 1 is laying the foundations, year two we should expect to see the fruits.
I don’t know what’s coming in year two for Emery.
He’s the ultimate response to Wenger. We’ve gone from a puritanical artist, happy to accept failure if it’s in the name of beauty… to a hardcore pragmatist, who is happy to throw the middle-finger to the doubters if the results stick.
‘I do not promise titles, I promise to compete.’
Except… at Arsenal, it’s not really about the results.
‘At Arsenal, I have the feeling, for the first time, of winning to build, not to survive. I feel the respect towards me even when we lose, but I want that the defeats hurt more, because it is a step to improve competitively. I want the mourning to lose be greater than two hours.’
We’re building a pragmatism machine that didn’t do the job in the league, and the success of the season is weighing on a coin toss on Wednesday.
‘But we were close’ is Gazidis talk (Milan finished 5th lolololol).
When you add this sort of chatter up, with the buzzy, but ultimately non-commital vision set by Raul and Vinai, you start to build a picture of a machine that’s not really geared to make a rapid ascent up the progression curve.
That’s why I’m finding it difficult to understand why any Arsenal fan would accept losing to Chelsea if it meant Spurs lost at the weekend.
Worry about your own house. If Spurs win the Champions League, good for them. We’ve had plenty of chances. If the dice rolls that way, so be it. The reality is, this Europa game is integral to our 5 year plan. We need to bring in elite players this summer, if we have to do it on a budget, it’s Banega on toast, washed down with a glass of BANG AVERAGE. There is no circumstance in which losing the final is acceptable.
So let’s not start acting like cucks. A European trophy is on the line. You should never want your own team to lose… unless it’s like, some sort of technicality in the group stages… or it could see Spurs relegated. Positive losing is the only way I can accept it, and not winning a trophy is never positive losing.
Emery on a budget would add 3 years of misery to our Arsenal lives.
Let’s not go down that path, even if it is just a hypothetical.
x
P.S. Emery anti-Brexit.
‘We already know what nationalism is. Crises give wings. I am Basque, I know what I am talking about, and I am comfortable as Basque and Spanish. When there are problems, people tend to be enrooted, to defend the inside. Personally, I think we have to open borders, not close them, and when you go outside, you have to make an effort to enter into another culture.’
Someone chuck a milkshake at him!
Words
“It would appear that that narrow interpretation is utter bollocks, as every other owner has injected funds, as the FFP rules are actually quite flexible in terms of allowing them to do precisely that.”
That’s financial fair play though overall not self-sustainability.
Other owners have not been at clubs that declare themselves as self-sustainable.
Yes red, Wenger did nothing to improve players.
Pedro hard to stand still if success for a club is only determined by what happens in the champions league.
Someone just performed worse than him,losing to Ole and the cups to minnows and got an extension.
That Valentin hates Emery doesn’t mean PSG fans hated him by the way
Guys, Pep is mustard. We’d all be jizzing if he was at Arsenal, and not worried about him not having £400m to get us going.
Full data isn’t available for the last 2 years – only for the 10 year period before that, when incidentally, UEFA FFP rules were more rigid.
During that period, Liverpool’s owners did inject funds, as did the owners of many other clubs.
In the last two years, only Spurs’ owners have injected funds – allowable as its for stadium financing.
Well good news for Stuttgart that they have a man who literally walks on water in Sven, they will be fine I guess.
Imagine leaving in a huff to end up in Bundesliga 2.
Words
Arsenal are and have declared themselves self-sustainable.
All the other clubs you mention haven’t.
Therein lies the difference.
Pedro
Yes PSG didn’t win the league in Emery’s 1st season. But Monaco got the 2nd highest total ever in Ligue 1. That Monaco team was pretty good wouldn’t you agree?
I don’t think Emery is better than Pep. I like Pep a lot. But spending over £500m on players makes it a lot easier for your philosophy to come to fruition.
Again I’d take Emery and that City squad any day over Pep and our current squad. Because for me players make a bigger difference than a manager.
RH, because Tuchel; though a bit of a nutcase, has a more exciting footballing philosophy than Emery.
If he fails in year two, then he’ll be gone.
… PSG fans didn’t like Emery. That’s not just a Valentin thing.
Looks like Pavard of Stuttgart will be up for grabs then.
I actually think he is better being employed as a right back rather than centre back.
Good enough footballer but a bit over-rated in the pure defensive sense if we are talking centre back.
And RB for Arsenal for the first XI is not priority at all.
Tuchel has a philosophy? Sounds like everyone does except Unai. And I heard he’s a liberal too.
Ishola surely you know that he’s already signed for Bayern last January
PSG fans didn’t like Emery… Source pls.
In my understanding he had an okay relationship with the fans, had its highs and lows and he won them things, 7 shiny things to be exact. And contrary to the picture you are painting his team also scored goals, 178 of it in the league alone.
Tuchel has done nothing in his career to be consider a better manager,that you like him doesn’t make him better sorry
Gbat,
I misread what you wrote earlier.
Sure, a squad built by Pep over 3 seasons, versus our squad is going to be better.
Question is, would Emery have just done what Pep has done if he’d been there for 3 seasons.
History would suggest no.
Pavard was alright in the World Cup, was probably France’s least impressive starter though.
Has had a horrible season at Stuttgart. Bayern must be second-guessing themselves given they paid a fair whack on him.
No I didn’t.
Haven’t been following news on Pavard.
Words
Injecting money for infrastructure is a world away from putting money in to buy players. Which is what I believe the Liverpool owners did as well.
Like it or not FFP is starting to bite – the true test will be whether City get a CL ban.
Can I take a moment to congratulate and commend TR7 today.
His output and analysis has been superlative.
Well played Sir.
Yea every single manager in the world has a philosophy bar Emery. Gotta love this place sometimes
Giroud was France’s worst starter, no?
The scenes when his grandchildren ask him how many goals he scored when he ‘won the world cup’.
“Quoi? Not even un goal? Zut alors!”
“And I heard he’s a liberal too.”
Well that’s that – EMERY OUT!
RH, Tuchel is the manager the big clubs wanted. Chelsea tried for him, Bayern were desperate for him… very unlikely you’ll see Emery at another… but with you cheerleading his abilities from the comments here, anything is possible
Pavard will play at for Bayern, Kimmich has their RB sot on lockdown. Arguably their best player this season after Lewandowski.
Hernandez is the same, hard to see him dislodging Alaba at LB. Benches Hummels and Pavard/Sule will partner him most likely.
at CB for Bayern
RH, 10 posts ago, you thought ‘winning’ was a philosophy, but rich to start tutting at other people now you’ve had it explained to you.
Jamie
Yeah between them two, Pavard edges Giroud because of the worldie shinner against the Argies.
Union Berlin were a Oberliga side just over a decade ago.
That’s fifth tier of Germam football.
Congrats to them in reaching the top tier tonight.
Meh, never been sold on the Tuchel sauce if I’m honest.
The media were hyping him as the second coming of Klopp but his achievements at Dortmund pales in comparison to Jurgen’s.
Has had an underwhelming season in Paris too, no better than Emery’s last season.
One thing is for sure… Emery is far more eloquent speaking to Spanish media.
WE –
For sure. I suspect Giroud will always suffer from a touch of the Impostor Syndrome when he recants winning the WC.
“No, no. I didn’t score any goals per se, but I really tied the room together (The Big Lebowski reference).”
RB Leipzig without the moolah Ishola. Makes for a good story.
Pedro,
Delph may have played as a left back for a super successful side, but he wasn’t first choice, and he always looked pretty ropey and was one of the side’s few weak links when he did play
I still think winning is a philosophy thank you very much. Doing whatever you have to win is a philosophy. Nothing was explained to me.
Newsflash Pedro he is being linked with the Barca job, and no I didnt recommend him.
Bet you thought the best clubs were going to be after Sven too…
Zero shots on target too, or am I making that up? Embarrassing from the starting striker of the side who won the fucking thing. Poor guy.
WE, familiar story towards the end of the season, when the going got tough, he started blaming the players.
Same thing crashed him at Dortmund. Needs a stronger assistant to tame those wild instincts.
I have a new sauce this season… Marco Rose and Rene Matic. Very excited to see if their skills transfer over.
Still loving a bit of Fonseca as well.
No way. And here I thought he was such a dummy that he spoke a broken language wherever he went. Credit where credit is due there’s plenty of foreign managers who’d use an interpreter in their first season. But let’s not focus on that
Pedro
His 2nd season at PSG was an improvement. So maybe he would.
I’d prefer Pep was our manager. But I’m more interested in us having a better squad than a better manager. Because for me they are the real difference makers.
Jamie
Funny how they didn’t even need him to score in the end. They beat Croatia comfortably in the Final and others stepped up to edge them past Uruguay and Belgium.
Was a weird World Cup in that France weren’t really outstanding barring the Final imo, kind of just trucked along winning close games. Have a lot of admiration for the grit that they showed against Belgium especially.
RH, the same article has Barca linked to Bob Martinez and Ronald Koeman (who they hate).
Hardly a newsflash.
… and again, you can argue persistently that you think ‘winning’ is a philosophy, but it’s not.
WE
“RB Leipzig without the moolah . Makes for a good story.”
Yeah they are a small set-up but have a very loyal fanbase.
Remember all those years back when we were told Hertha Berlin were going to become the next big super club in world football? Didn’t quite materialise did it.
Berlin is still waiting for a super club the capital of the country.
Gbat, his second season was an improvement after European football raped Monaco.
WE –
It was a strange one. I guess in the end, Deschamps’ philosophy was simply to win.
Too soon, chaps?!
Bit rich calling me an Emery cheerleader when I am judging him based on things he has actually done.
You cheerlead people based on things you thing they might do.
Ronald koeman and Robbie Martinez have rebuilt their reputation with national sides. Wonder why Barca haven’t heard of a certain master of the game at City
It’s all good having Money to splash like a confetti is important to getting your style of play kicking but I’m pretty sure having a defined style of play to fit in those players and carving out a formula to get results against all manner of sides is just as important Moaninho played shit football with a 400M squad and duly got sacked for his troubles Up till now there’s isn’t a pointer Emery is capable of delivery Pep’s level of success with City given same resources Guy is a middling coach, a very good cup manager but shits his… Read more »
RH, you’re cheerleading Emery for his Europa record. We get it.
… and if I were Barca, I’d prefer Arteta over every single one of those candidates.
Pedro The CL bottle-job at home against United was pretty inexcusable, they had more than enough to see that 2nd leg home and he got shown up by a rook in Ole. Wasn’t far off the embarrassment that Emery presided over in Camp Nou given they were playing a side with prime Messi, Neymar and Suarez and he was playing a side with Lukaku, Rashford and McTominay. His stint in Dortmund was overrated, had an excellent first season but he didn’t build on it and their recruitment to follow it up was piss poor with Schurrle, Gotze,Rode, Isak, Emre Mor… Read more »
… interesting that Barca fan blogs are talking about Xavi. Food for thought.
One day Arteta will manage, hopefully we will all be Here to see what exactly the noise from you is all about
Till then we will just watch clubs make appointments without even considering him.
Eagle apparently Tuchel needs a strong assistant to balance the sauce
Xavi’s always come across as an unshaven asshole but football genius he is.
Wouldn’t surprise me to see him morph into an excellent gaffer if he has any man-management skills, his long-term tenure as Captain of Barca in front of world class talent would suggest he has.
No Pedro not just his Europa record, from Lorca through Almeria,then Valencia through Sevilla he has done a good job. Even at PSG he did a good job.
And for us he will do his best before leaving.
Same cannot be said for some of the names you have touted in the past, both coaches and execs
Ishola
Yeah it’s weird how Germany are the one top European country that have lacked a quality team throughout the history of the Bundesliga. A Berlin club should be prime for a big-money takeover really given the potential.
France did as well to a lesser extent as PSG were decent in the 90’s before the Gulf money, a bit like Chelsea before Abramovich.
And in Italy, neither Roma nor Lazio are amongst the elite Italian sides even if they are in the tier just below.
… and if I were Barca, I’d prefer Arteta over every single one of those candidates
Thank goodness for them you’re not in charge at Barca. Pick an assistant over actual managers again. Tut Tut
WE you’re bang on the money regards Tuchel. I still wouldn’t discount him as a potential candidate in the future and a few years back I absolutely wanted him instead of Wenger but he’s absolutely gormless as a manager. Nothing striking about him whatsoever
Pedro
You realise that Monaco will only play PSG twice in the league?
Monaco can’t do anything about PSG’s other 36 games. And vice versa. His 2nd season was an improvement. I’m pretty sure 6 more points is an improvement.
Using your way of thinking, did Liverpool only get 2nd because United declined? Of course not.
Alot of what we do this summer and the next couple of years is really riding on the game against Chavs this Wednesday
Emery has built a reputation as the Europa King.
Bet this would be the best of the lot for him if he clinches it
Hope for both his sake and the club he has a plan see us emerge victorious
There won’t be a hiding place for him in any event he gets turned over by a trophyless Sarri
We simply have to win,no excuse.
Does anybody know when Thomas Vermaelen’s Barcelona contract expire?
I thought that it did this year but some site reports that he may still be with Barcelona next year.
Anyway that was a good deal negotiated by Arsenal. Who signed on that one for Barcelona?
Buying an injured player, who is out for a full season!
Just looking through that Stuttgart squad Pablo Maffeo could be worth a shout for signing as back-up to Bellerin.
Would come cheap enough as he has had a bad time at Stuttgart but the talent is there. Stuttgart paid a lot of money for him for their finances and he showed talent at Girona before.
PSG were never decent. They were known as a Cup team. Marseilles used to be the dominant force in French football before Lyon, then PSG.
PSG were pretty much on par with Chelsea before Abramovitch. A club in the country capital with potential if a sugar daddy were to come.
Tell you what, Dortmund will be serious again next season if they can hold onto Sancho.
Have added three really good players in Brandt, Thorgan Hazard and Nico Schulz.
Ishola I wanted him prior to going to Stuttgart. He was absolutely fantastic at Girona the previous season and he was never going to get an opportunity at City. I’d take him in a heartbeat
In 98, Guivarch was France main striker and he did not score.
There is nothing new in having a striker acting as pivot that does not score during a tournament.
However Giroud is a lot appreciated by his teammates and the knowledgeable people who can see what he brings to the team.
Anyway The Proof will always be in The Pudding…..
Come Wednesday night… hours away from now…
(The word on The Street- our PedRo has a block busting post pre match build up and Report coming..)
Yet..if
The Clown wins – he will get a stay of Execution ( until Nov 2019)
Or If The Clown looses-It’s The Guillotine for Unai The Chameleon…. its Over
It’s as simple as that….
(Loosers Cup Showtime in Tawdry, Sweaty Baku…. hours away.)…
Let The Shenanigans Begin..
(*** if Arsenal win- I’ll be absent for 14 days on The Grove.)
Victorious
Your anti-Emery stance even comes through when you are even supposedly behind him for the Europa League.
Why don’t you just hope he loses the match and this disaster appointment for Arsenal could come to a quick end?
You probably do hope that like others.
And don’t set this match up as an absolute Emery failure if he doesn’t win. It’s a must win for Arsenal but Chelsea are favourites for the match however tight it is.
Yeah that’s what I said Valentin.
And that is decent, no? Decent doesn’t mean the dominant force.
WE have also got Hakimi for another season I believe
Marko
“I wanted him prior to going to Stuttgart. He was absolutely fantastic at Girona the previous season and he was never going to get an opportunity at City. I’d take him in a heartbeat”
yeah I liked the look of him as well in Spain and Stuttgart paid a fair amount for him for them anyway.
But he has had a bad time there at Stuttgart. All kinds of stories and allegations about him but then again Stuttgart given their season was probably overall an unhappy place anyway.
Gbat, my logic says Liverpool only got second because Pep kept City focused in year two, a notoriously hard thing to do when the team behind you clocks 97 points.
Yeah Marko, he’s been good for them.
They could still do with signing a CM partner for Witsel. Thomas Delaney is ok but he’s a bit of a grafter without much imagination. Dahoud has struggled too which is disappointing as he looked really good at Monchengladbach.
@WengerEagle,
Historically Berlin does not have a unified football team. The German system makes it nearly impossible for a sugar daddy to come buy a team and the league.
Also Bayern Munich has such a grip on the German football, that any attempt to change the current order of things will be defeated. Any team that has success in one season suddenly lose all its best players to Bayern the following season. Hummels, Lewandowski, Podolski, Götze, …
WE it’s probably the one area that they could still need to strengthen in. Everywhere else they’re looking very strong in. Their CB’s need to stay fit though next season. Brilliant group though Akanji, Diallo and Zagadou look like turning out to be great Defenders
Yeah Valentin agree, it’s something to do with fan ownership isn’t it? And haven’t Leipzig found loopholes around it?
Bayern do tend to recruit internally in the Bundesliga, given their elite stature and financial backing relative to other German clubs, makes it near impossible for players to turn them down.
Dortmund are the only team capable of breaking up the monopoly since they last won the league,as I’ve said they’ve made three ambitious signings already so it pretty much hinges on whether or not they can hold onto Jadon Sancho.
Berlin is like Hamburg.
Big cities where football is not the be all and end all.
Dortmund and Schalke in the Ruhr are football mad.
Munich although a big city as well of course are seen as southern country bumpkins to Berliners and Hamburgers.
It’s a bit like London.
The real hotbed of football in England is the North-West, Man United and Liverpool away from the capital London.
Man-management cost Emery the job at PSG, big names, big egos. He has smaller egos to contend with at Arsenal, one big-name who is no longer big.
Sven Mislintat is officially going to use his diamond eye in the Bundesliga 2. It’s not surprising that he’s in free fall away from BVB because he’s away from Michael Zorc.
Raul Sanheli saw through hype that very quickly and I’m sure we dodged a bullet with him.
I’m expecting to read anytime soon that Stuttgart have moved him on. The dude needs a parachute.
I don’t understand why city rent ready to pay Sane close to Raheem Sterling. They are set on a path that will send him to Bayern.
england’s best
‘Man-management cost Emery the job at PSG, big names, big egos. He has smaller egos to contend with at Arsenal, one big-name who is no longer big.’
Actually I think it’s a club that’s being run like a frat house that cost him his job.
The club allows players to openly undermine the manager by running to the chairman to tell stories.
PSG is the perfect AstroTurf club. A club founded in 1970 is very small by modern European standards. It just goes to show that money cannot buy class.
Dissenter,
Sven will do well at Stuttgart and you’ll be blaming someone else for his success.
We get it… you don’t believe in modern football, structure, specialisation, delegation, assistant managers, or managers (unless they are Emery).
What did you say you did again?
Pedro
Whatever you say say, you get to have the last word.
I’ve always maintained that Michael Zorc was the driver of the BVB success.
They have continued to make quality signings since Sven left whereas Sven’s parachute appears to have failed. He’s falling faster than a meteor at the moment.
The guy you championed and then set up conspiracy theories about his exit from Arsenal isn’t as good as you once believed.
Dissenter, hardly insightful that a great CEO is driving a clubs success, is it?
Succession planning is part of the role.
Lose a great chief scout, bring in another one.
Absolute basics.
Pedro,
What did I say that I do?
Gosh, you won’t let this go, will you. You get very catty when confronted about positions that you staked a claim on.
Keep speculating…one day it’s a Macdonald server, another day I may be a coal miner. You’ll stumble on the truth someday.
Dissenter, I get catty when confronted by people that aren’t believable. You sit in that category.
Dissenter,
I’d guess you practice some form of dermatology, coz you certainly know how to get under Pedro’s skin.
Or maybe a neurosurgeon, coz you know how to get inside his head!
Chief scout brings the footballing director names of several options from scouting , the footballing director makes that final decision after deliberations with the entire team.
Has it occurred to you that Sven my be lacking the capacity to take that next climb up the ladder, that he cannot perform that executive task expected on a footballing director?.
That’s what Raul thought when he blocked his expected promotion. . He was most likely correct..and you’re respectfully wrong.
Dissenter,
You are now arguing a different point.
I don’t know what Sven would be like as a Technical Director. I didn’t canvass for him to be promoted to the role. He was an elite chief scout, that much we know for certain.
All of us – Do not want a Catty PedRo… (meow…)
We want PedRo and His Crew dissecting this bloody interview.
(And Forget Dissenter The Curmudgeon)
Studying this interview again- reveals Emery has shocking self esteem issues.
The way he ‘ Bigs ‘ up his opposition managers are tell tale signs of this.
Underdog mentality….
CG, absolutely agree sir.
He doesn’t feel comfortable in his own skin… a worry for someone at this stage in his career.
But we’ll see. Huge game on Wednesday. Mourinho won the Europa and it was seen as a genius move. Winning it is the only way to take the edge of Saturday.
After his player of the season performance over there, it would be silly not to discuss a player swap with Fulham for Segnesson if they were open to the idea and Chambers were willing to move.
Bielik should be given Chambers’ spot after his excellent loan spell…
Bielik and Chambers landing player of the season accolades is impressive.
Oh fuck off self esteem issues and doesn’t look comfortable in his skin. You too are trying too hard
Marko, love can blind.
Are you and CG in love? That doesn’t explain anything
PedRo
Oh for the days – when the one and only Brian Clough-plonked the football in the City Ground home dressing room on a towel every fortnight and said to his 11 players listening…
“”You are better than that rubbish next door. “””
(Cloughie never had tactics.)
They went 42 games unbeaten
They won 2 European Cups
They won the League Title.
They are still revered in Nottingham.
Never did he mention lizards…..
CG, he was an outrageous character.
I watched the film of him on a plane ride recently, very good.
Went off the boil in the end… but the original Jose Mourinho, no doubt.
(Character wise, not football)
Lol when Pep and Poch reference Bielsa they are hailed
When Emery mentions a few champions league winners he is ridiculed, self esteem issues
Yet one who literally hides under another is the next big thing and we must get him
What you call Tuchels philosophy is a rather poor imitation of klopps ..yet u think he has sauce
You go to remarkable lengths with your anti Emery stuff its funny
RH, that you think Klopp and Tuchel share the same footballing philosophies just doubles down on my instinct that you just argue for the sake of it.
(and that you still don’t understand what a philosophy is)
Your instincts have never been that reliable in my experience
To be fair Tuchel’s Dortmund was Klopp’s Dortmund without the success. His PSG aren’t all that. If he’s got sauce it’s stale from whatever bottle was left over from the previous manager.