Arsenal are thriving under Mikel Arteta right now, who returned to the club in 2019 to fix the mess left by Unai Emery.
Emery was dismissed as Arsenal manager in November 2019 after a dismal run of form, and he left a broken dressing room, uncertainty over the captain’s armband and a squad in complete disarray.
It took some time for Arteta to stamp his mark on the team, but Arsenal are now challenging for the title under him, and the recruitment process under Arteta and Edu Gaspar is a lot better now.
Although Emery, who is now at Aston Villa, was to blame for a lot of his failures, he was also let down by the club hierarchy, with a lot of disagreements over transfer targets.
It is no secret that Emery never wanted club-record signing Nicolas Pepe, and he had actually pushed to sign Pepe’s International teammate Wilfried Zaha instead.
What many may not realise, is that Emery was so keen on signing the Crystal Palace winger, that he was even willing to let Bukayo Saka leave in order to facilitate a deal.
Unai Emery wanted to loan out Bukayo Saka to sign Wilfried Zaha at Arsenal
The summer of 2019 was an important one for Arsenal, as they needed to right the wrongs of the previous campaign which saw them miss out on top four in the final weeks of the season, and were then humiliated by Chelsea in the Europa League final.
This was when Pepe arrived as an exciting record signing from Lille, but he never lived up to his price tag as he did not suit Arsenal’s style of play.
At the time, Emery wanted Zaha, and in 2019, The Independent reported that he was willing to let Saka and Reiss Nelson join Palace on loan in exchange.
“Arsenal have most recently suggested a £55m deal with £10m dependent on clauses, as well as highly-rated Reiss Nelson on loan as a temporary replacement for Zaha, but the Selhurst Park club have insisted this is nowhere near enough,” a report at the time stated.
“Although one of Arsenal’s talented young attackers temporarily coming does appeal to Palace – another alternative is Bukayo Saka – they don’t see the deal as anywhere near good enough for a player of such standing.”
Arsenal have Crystal Palace to thank for preventing Unai Emery error over Bukayo Saka
Emery did not get his way, as a big-money move for Zaha never materialised, and Saka stayed at the club. He then brought Saka into the first-team fold, and he impressed instantly.
Saka would then go on to become a key player when Arteta took over later that season as he initially came in at left-back, before moving to the wings.
If the deal for Zaha had gone through, Saka’s whole career could have been different. If he had failed to succeed at Palace, he may never have gained an opportunity at Arsenal.
Arsenal therefore have Palace’s reluctance to take Saka in exchange for Zaha to thank, as the England star is now the talisman at the club and one of the best wingers in European football.
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