Embattled Arsenal chief Unai Emery when confronted with the question of losing his job to former Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho. The terse reply from the Spaniard was "I am the coach." There is no assurance though how long that reality will be in effect.
As the Gunners struggle to flash championship form, the signs are piling up that Mourinho is making preparations to soon take charge at the Emirates. The Portuguese was seen recently at the stadium then reports leaked out that he had met with Raul Sanllehi, who is head of all football affairs for Arsenal.
When the Gunners only managed a 1-1 draw versus Vitoria this week, the pressure on Emery only increased. In a post-match interview, the Spaniard was again reminded of Mourinho's seemingly overcast shadow.
Outright, he dismissed the query and reminded the audience he remains the man in charge.
Further probed why Arsenal seemed grappling in clearing the net, like in the match against Vitoria, Emery pointed to the opposing team's defense. "They are very defensive , with a big structure defensively," the Gunners boss was reported by Metro as saying.
However, Emery was quick to blame the enemy's defensive wall but refused to acknowledge the Gunners' worrying slip in the scoring department, according to Bleacher Report. It looked like Arsenal was hesitant to take the shot as illustrated by the fact that the club took fewer shots in 10 of their last 17 games.
"Being outshot in matches has become a trend for Arsenal on Emery's watch," the same report added.
Compared to the Arsenal era presided over by Arsene Wenger for more than two decades, it's easy to see that the Gunners now lack "the expansive and attractive game that was an Arsenal hallmark."
Still on the matter of scoring, pundits are puzzled on why Arsenal failed to generate the winning numbers when in fact the club is packed with talents. As pointed out by Bleacher Report, Emery has at his disposal a gifted trio of strikers in the persons of Alexandre Lacazette, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and Gabriel Martinelli.
Also, it remains a wonder why Nicolas Pepe has yet to showcase his full potential under the guidance of Emery.
And even more baffling is the Spaniard's insistence of leaving out Mesut Ozil from most of Arsenal's games despite the German's obvious playmaking skills.
The Arsenal board is said to be willing to give the team manager until the season's end for the Gunners to shape up but the extended run of disappointing results and questionable tactical approach by Emery could lead to a change of heart ahead of the deadline, the report added.
