Arsenal fans all say the same thing after Unai Emery flop stuns in Champions League

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Many Arsenal fans took note as Matteo Guendouzi lit up the Champions League stage on Wednesday night.

Former Arsenal midfielder Matteo Guendouzi was in sparkling form as Lazio beat Harry Kane’s Bayern Munich 1-0 in the first leg of a round of 16 knock-out tie.

Guendouzi spent two seasons as part of the first-team squad at Arsenal between 2018 and 2020, following an £8 million switch from Ligue 2 outfit Lorient. 

Unai Emery brought the Frenchman to the Emirates Stadium during his time at the helm, and invested plenty of faith in the player in his first season in north London. 

There were flashes of real quality from the 24-year-old during his time in red and white, but also plenty of issues as well. Guendouzi did not last long in Mikel Arteta’s plans after he took over from Emery in the Arsenal dugout in December 2019.

In 2020, as reported by The Athletic, Arteta instructed Guendouzi to train alone, apart form the rest of the first team squad, citing issues with the player’s “attitude and general conduct.”

Guendouzi spent the 2020/21 season on loan at Hertha Berlin, before a temporary stint at Marseille that was made permanent in the summer of 2022, as he signed for the Ligue 1 outfit in a £9 million deal. Overall, his time at Arsenal has to be regarded as a huge disappointment given his obvious talent and potential.

However, it is now with Lazio in Italy that he has truly found his feet. Since joining the Italian club, though, Guendouzi has not been able to resist making a jibe at Arsenal.

Arsenal fans share their thoughts on Matteo Guendouzi

On the pitch, things are now going well for the 7-cap France international, as he turned in a player of the match performance against Bayern Munich last night.

Many Arsenal fans watching on had plenty to say about Guendouzi on X. One supporter said, “it’s genuinely a shame it didn’t work out for him here because underneath the chaos there was a genuinely talented footballer. He was a frustrating character at times but I wish him all the best.”

Another fan referred to Guendouzi as a “bad character that can affect the whole team.” One supporter called him “a talented jerk. I’d imagine that sums up a lot of professional athletes but he just never tried to hide it. Also the aesthetics of his game weren’t clean which I think had an impact on how people regarded him.”

One supporter admitted that they were “annoyed when he left, could’ve turned out a lot better, but he really wasn’t worth it.” Whilst another deemed him a “good player, horrible professional at the time he was at our club. Not heard many rumblings from Lazio about behaviour though, so maybe he’s changed?”