Unai Emery

[TonyD]

It does seem like we are playing like the beginning of the season again. 

[Tuscans]

Taken 5 to chill and reflect and listened to Unai after the match. The guy has been fucking phenomenal for us since arriving, took time to educate us about playing out from the back, systems, inverted wingers etc. I think back to how we were under Smith in the Premier League then Gerrard and now, how the skeleton of the team hasn't really changed. He's worked miracles on most the squad, never thought we would really get Champions League for decades let alone his second season in charge.

If only we were in a position where, like other clubs, we could spend an extra few million a season. I do wonder where this team would end up. 2nd, 1st? Some have never seen us finish so high in the league, beat the best domestically or in Europe. I lose sight at times of where we were and where we are now, 3rd in the strongest league in the world spending buttons.

In every press conference he mentions the supporters, the energy, why? He's harking back to when there was a buzz the first season, the second season, that noise helped us smash 6 past Brighton, helped us draw 3-3 against Liverpool.

It was shite tonight, it has been for a good 4 or 5 weeks, like it was in August/ September. I wouldn't have another manager on the planet to turn it around other than Unai Emery.

[gpbarr]

Amen

[Walmley_Villa]

I doubt anyone from Madrid is now watching us.

[Mellin]

Well said.

Emery is still the man. Anyone questioning that needs to go for a walk. I'm sure he will identify what is wrong and correct it. He needs the summer though as we clearly need a refresh in certain positions. I remember posting in preseason that we'd struggle to score goals because the attack looked light...and that was not knowing how Guess and was going to turn out. In truth it has been poor all season, barring Rogers, and it's a minor miracle we're in third. There rest of the team, and Emery, have carried it.

Now he has to find a way to win with a shit attack and minus half a midfield. Think he had the right idea with Mings. Don't concede and shit a goal. I'd like to go back to that, with Rogers left, Barkley at 10 and Abraham in. Whatever it is, he needs to act fast, but I 100% back him, even if we fail.

[aj2k77]

Fucking abysmal decisions tonight.

[ROBBO]

He has to play Barkley just behind the strikers, he seems the only player thats capable at the moment, pity he can't last a full game.

[brontebilly]

He has to play Barkley just behind the strikers, he seems the only player thats capable at the moment, pity he can't last a full game.

We can never again play Barkley in a midfield two anyway.

[aj2k77]

He really, really needs to do something with our attacking approach. We've scored 5 in 8 games now. Watkins looks finished and we're persisting with the same formula over and over without the players to do it now. Sancho offers no threat, Buendia is useless, Bailey is comically bad. We're really in danger of seeing the season collapse and continuing with the same old without the midfield 3 isn't going to work.

[eamonn]

I know he dislikes the media part of his job and what he tells the press may be very different to what he says to the players but it still feels worrying when he says that we were excellent in the first half.

Controlling possession seems to be the hallmark of playing well for him if a couple of half chances are created and the defence largely untroubled. It ignores the reality of the possession primarily being in our own third and feels like a horror-flashback to Lambert-goes-to-Germany-to-learn-new-tactics. Scarily, I'm not sure that Karim El-Ahmadi and Brett feckin' Holman would look any worse than Onana and Bailey at the moment

It suggests that Emery is entrenched in his philosophy and waiting for it to turn good. We could easily have lost the 5 league games since Newcastle away without any real complaints. I really thought one of the best managers in the world would have a Plan B - even our subs are generally like for like.

The only thing I can see that can salvage our season is the return of our captain to galvanise those around him.

[usav]

Let’s be honest here, were we really that great when we were on the run before Christmas?  Some of those results were flattering us a little.  Lose our 3 first choice midfielders and it was bound to end up in a nosedive.  Having said that, we should be able to beat Wolves easily.  Unai is not exempt from blame, Buendia is nowhere near the standard we have set and is a petulant little shit and a liability who spends way too much time rolling around on the floor or giving the ball away too cheaply.  We are very predictable to play against, especially when we have two 6’s starting in midfield. Wolves turned up for a local Derby, we turned up for a training session.

[ChicagoLion]

He really, really needs to do something with our attacking approach. We've scored 5 in 8 games now. Watkins looks finished and we're persisting with the same formula over and over without the players to do it now. Sancho offers no threat, Buendia is useless, Bailey is comically bad. We're really in danger of seeing the season collapse and continuing with the same old without the midfield 3 isn't going to work.

I agree but we also need to sort out our midfield. We have to start getting some control and not be as easy to play through as even Wolves found it.
I think you can only play 1 of Buendia Bailey and Sancho, and as soon as you realise they are not effective take them off. He also can not persist with Watkins, he looks shot.

[Bobby Boy]

Taken 5 to chill and reflect and listened to Unai after the match. The guy has been fucking phenomenal for us since arriving, took time to educate us about playing out from the back, systems, inverted wingers etc. I think back to how we were under Smith in the Premier League then Gerrard and now, how the skeleton of the team hasn't really changed. He's worked miracles on most the squad, never thought we would really get Champions League for decades let alone his second season in charge.

If only we were in a position where, like other clubs, we could spend an extra few million a season. I do wonder where this team would end up. 2nd, 1st? Some have never seen us finish so high in the league, beat the best domestically or in Europe. I lose sight at times of where we were and where we are now, 3rd in the strongest league in the world spending buttons.

In every press conference he mentions the supporters, the energy, why? He's harking back to when there was a buzz the first season, the second season, that noise helped us smash 6 past Brighton, helped us draw 3-3 against Liverpool.

It was shite tonight, it has been for a good 4 or 5 weeks, like it was in August/ September. I wouldn't have another manager on the planet to turn it around other than Unai Emery.

Well said.

Emery is still the man. Anyone questioning that needs to go for a walk. I'm sure he will identify what is wrong and correct it. He needs the summer though as we clearly need a refresh in certain positions. I remember posting in preseason that we'd struggle to score goals because the attack looked light...and that was not knowing how Guess and was going to turn out. In truth it has been poor all season, barring Rogers, and it's a minor miracle we're in third. There rest of the team, and Emery, have carried it.

Now he has to find a way to win with a shit attack and minus half a midfield. Think he had the right idea with Mings. Don't concede and shit a goal. I'd like to go back to that, with Rogers left, Barkley at 10 and Abraham in. Whatever it is, he needs to act fast, but I 100% back him, even if we fail.

You make some fair points here but you also set up a straw man by denouncing any supporter who is calling for Emery's head. I haven't seen anyone asking for him to be sacked but I think it is perfectly reasonable to call out what we are seeing.

And what we are seeing and have been seeing for weeks is sub standard, energy free performances that would have brought howls of derision if they had been served up by Lambert, Bruce or Gerrard.

This is not a cult. Emery is not infallible.

It is clearly not right at the minute and Emery deserves every chance to correct it. What is worrying is that there doesn't seem to be any indication that he sees that there's a problem judging by the way we are being set up to play week after week.

[Clampy]

The biggest mistake he made last night (apart from selecting one or two in rhe starting line up) was taking Luiz off.

[Demitri_C]

Well yeah obviously. But it’d be nice if he could now start to try doing something different. Part of his genius is tactical acumen, and we’ve been miles off it for weeks.

100% agree Paul