DBasia.news – Unai Emery, Arsenal manager, will undergo his full debut season with the Gunners. Emery replaces Arsene Wenger, who has coached Arsenal for 22 years.
Wenger resigned – allegedly because the club fired him – after failing to bring Arsenal to qualify for the Champions League qualification in two consecutive seasons, plus failing to win the Premier League title since last reaching it in 2004.
Emery was appointed after completing his two-season contract with PSG (Paris Saint-Germain). So far, the first season of the Spanish manager can be said to be not very bad. Arsenal competed in the Champions League zone and successfully reach the Europa League semi-finals.
Three days ago, or precisely on April 20, 2019, exactly a year since Wenger resigned from his position as manager of Arsenal – April 20, 2018. Comparison by seeing Arsenal’s change in the Wenger era with Emery rising to the surface.
Of course, it is unfair to compare Wenger’s 22 years of service with the Arsenal season under Emery. Therefore, a comparison will be made based on 50 Arsenal matches with Emery in all competitions, with 50 Arsenal matches in Wenger’s last season.
Increase in Numbers Under Emery’s Direction
Emery, 47, won 32 wins with a win ratio of 64 percent. While in Wenger’s 50 matches with Arsenal last season, Arsenal won 25 times, drew nine and lost 16 times – Emery had only seven draws and 11 defeats.
Emery’s presence improved several aspects of Arsenal’s game, such as sharpness to score, especially on the front lines, and a more solid defense. Emery’s Arsenal have scored 97 goals – two more than the Wenger era.
As for the defensive or defensive side, Emery has one more clean sheet record and conceded eight goals lower than Wenger. The application of 3-4-2-1 tactics gives balance to play in the current Arsenal squad.
The great performances of the two attackers, Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who in fact were Wenger’s last two purchases, also increased Arsenal’s conversion ratio to 15.3 from 12.67 in the Wenger era.
Lacazette has scored 13 goals in 32 appearances and Aubameyang has scored 19 goals in 33 matches in the Premier League. Both are often rotated by Emery if they play with one attacker or even play together.
Discipline Problems
Issues about Arsenal’s discipline did not change drastically from the Wenger era to Emery. Even in the Emery era, it was a little worse than Wenger. Within 50 matches in all competitions, Arsenal already had four players who received red cards – twice more than Wenger’s time.
The number of yellow cards is identical to Wenger’s time. The difference, Arsenal’s midfield is now more ‘alive’ and energized as it is reinforced by two new players: Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi. The combination of both have produced 16 cards and two red cards.
Arsenal looked undisciplined, however, their midfield is more ferocious than the Wenger era and is ready to fight against the midfield of rival teams. Torreira, a Uruguayan midfielder who is actively engaged, so is Guendouzi in midfield.