Why Arsenal must fire Unai Emery

How many more disasters will it take before Arsenal finally fire Unai Emery?

When Granit Xhaka swore at the fans and removed his Arsenal kit before storming down the tunnel, both his fate and Unai Emery’s fate were sealed. That one moment will forever be etched on the minds of fans, as that one incident was the climax to the tensions that had been rising in the club since the Gunner’s late-season collapse in 2018-2019.

Arsenal are not playing Champions League football. Their record signing, who rescued them from the jaws of defeat in the Europa League, remained on the bench in a game that Arsenal would draw 1-1 with Wolves. A game in which Lucas Torreira played a more attacking role than Dani Ceballos and Mesut Ozil, whose lack of playing time has become the biggest story in London.

And all Emery could say after another lifeless performance from Arsenal, in which their lone point was again rescued by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexander Lacazette combining for a goal, was this:

"“It’s a bad result, but tactically it worked how we wanted.”"

Cue the memes.

The most hilarious part of that simple statement from Emery isn’t even that it is absurd and not grounded in any reality. No, it’s the utter lack of self-awareness. Who on earth is the “we”? How did Pepe feel about remaining on the bench when a goal was needed? What was the purpose of subbing out Kieran Tierney for Sead Kolasinac? And why on earth was Torreira playing so high up the pitch compared to Ceballos?

Arsenal had almost no budget to work with this summer, yet they still made sweeping upgrades for Emery. They added one of Europe’s most prolific goal-scorers in Pepe, who has been impressive lately. Ceballos is a midfield maestro with world-class potential. David Luiz may be known more for the memes, but he’s been the team’s best center back. And Tierney has the potential to be one of the best left backs in the Premier League.

It’s not like Arsenal sold their best star this past summer. No, that was Chelsea, and they are ahead of Arsenal in the table and playing much, much better football with Frank Lampard at the helm. For the second straight year, Arsenal don’t look like a team that has any business qualifying for the Champions League, and they are stumbling in a year in which the Premier League looks weak – several steps below the quality in the Bundesliga and La Liga this season.

But what’s worse than all of the tactical fumblings, the poor personnel decisions, and the losses is the utter lack of organizational control. Nobody seems to respect Emery, who looks exactly like the sort of manager who cannot handle the spotlight of a top club, nor the responsibilities that come with working with the world’s absolute top professionals.

Emery named Xhaka, who is too reckless and poor at defending to start as a defensive midfielder on a team with major defensive issues, his captain. It backfired spectacularly. He’s benched Ozil under the apparent notion that Ozil does not defend, yet he rewards Xhaka for his lack of defense at a deeper lying midfield position. And if Arsenal’s goal is to remove Ozil’s wages, would benching him really entice other clubs into taking a gamble on the German legend? It certainly hasn’t endeared Arsenal’s own fan base, which is becoming even more restless. After all, Ozil has built up more good will with them than Emery ever has.

What is the upside in keeping Emery at the helm of a sinking ship? He’s added nothing to the club as a manager. Few can seem to define what his philosophy is, and fewer can seem to identify the players who have a genuine relationship with him. It’s hard to comprehend how Arsenal could do worse, and it’s even harder to fathom Emery remaining the manager beyond 2020, especially after the infamous incident with Xhaka.

As Arsenal continue to punch below their weight despite an aggressive offseason and a talented squad, the main culprit becomes clearer. #EmeryOut is a movement that will not cease until the club makes the move that seems inevitable, and it will be hard to tell Arsenal fans that even a caretaker manager could do worse than Emery. His brand of leadership has created toxicity around the club, and his questionable tactics have hurt the Gunners in the table during a season in which third place should have been ripe for the taking.