What Unai Emery did to really annoy some Arsenal stars at London Colney revealed

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Unai Emery regularly frustrated Arsenal players during his time in charge of the club.

Unai Emery did not last two full seasons in charge of Arsenal. Having been appointed as the successor to Arsene Wenger in May 2018, he was hauled out in November 2019.

Mikel Arteta was then installed in his first ever managerial role, taking the reins at the Emirates Stadium. The former club captain has gradually turned the Gunners into the genuine title contenders once more. 

Meanwhile, Emery has since taken charge of Aston Villa, and has done a fantastic job at the helm for the Midlands outfit.

Last season, he led the Villans to Europa Conference League qualification, and they are currently sat fourth in the Premier League table, whilst Arteta’s side top the pile.

Given his subsequent success, it could be argued that Arsenal treated Emery harshly. They certainly did not afford him the same amount of time to rebuild at Arsenal and overcome the challenges facing him as they did for Arteta. After all, the current boss had some significant setbacks in his first few campaigns in charge, but kept his job. Rio Ferdinand believes that the Gunners showed Emery a lack of respect with their treatment of him.

Arsenal legend Tony Adams also believes that Arsenal may well have won the Premier League title last season had Emery still been in the dugout, rather than slipping up late on, as they did under Arteta’s watch.

Unai Emery must avoid Arsenal mistakes at Aston Villa

Ultimately, though, it seems clear that Emery was simply not a good fit at Arsenal, at least at the time he held the position. It has now come to light that his methods used to annoy the Arsenal squad. 

A report in The Athletic has now stated that, “as he [Emery] does at Villa working from 7am to 7pm, he would be at Arsenal’s London Colney training ground until late, brimming with ideas and designing training sessions that were often long. They could irk players, especially on the days before games when Emery was known to spend two to three hours on the grass, practising shape work.”

Emery is undeniably an excellent and innovative coach, who has enjoyed success in several of his previous positions. Ultimately, though, his approach did not inspire the Arsenal squad he was working with. So far, at least, he does not appear to have encountered the same obstacles at Villa Park. 

The relentless intensity with which Emery works, though, could lead to burn out and exhaustion amongst the Villa squad. That is a danger that the manager has to be wary of.

In the meantime, having proven himself to be an excellent appointment, Arteta needs to keep his side focused on the task ahead of them. They are well-placed to mount another sustained title challenge this season, and will need to draw on the experience they gained from the disappointment of falling short last time around to ensure that they actually get their hands on the trophy this season.