Last season:
Premier League: 6th
FA Cup: Third round (Lost vs Nottingham Forest)
Europa League: Semifinals (Lost vs Atletico Madrid)
Carabao Cup: Runners up (Lost vs Manchester City)
For the first time in 22 years, a new man will be in the manager hot seat at Arsenal. After Arsene Wenger announced his departure from the club, Unai Emery was the one chosen to replace the Premier League icon.
The former PSG and Sevilla coach brings in a tonne of European experience as well as a winning mentality, however, we all know that the Premier League is a different kettle of fish compared to other major leagues in Europe.
With more teams than ever capable of making the top four and gaining qualification to the Champions League, the goal for Emery this season will be to get Arsenal back into Europe’s most prestigious tournament, and he will need to hit the ground running.
Summer business
There wasn’t too much to smile about for Arsenals fan last season. Finishing sixth in the league was Wenger’s lowest position since in the Frenchman’s tenure, and the Gunners were dumped out of the FA Cup in the third round by Championship side Nottingham Forest.
A run to the Europa League semifinals and runners up in the League Cup meant Arsenal have the potential for silverware this season, and Emery has made his mark on the squad already by bringing in a host of new players.
Two of the players that the Spaniard bought in are for a position of need for Arsenal for what it seems like forever in the form of defensive midfielder Lucas Torreira from Sampdoria and defender Sokartis from Borussia Dortmund.
Torreira shone for Uruguay during the World Cup with his no-nonsense attitude in the heart of the midfield for the Uruguayan side, and Sokratis has been beloved by the Dortmund fans, and may have been influenced by the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan to join the club. Whether the players bought in will solve the constant issue of the positions cannot be answered just yet, but performances in pre-season have been promising so far.
As well as Torreira and Sokratis, Emery has brought in German goalkeeper Bernd Leno to strengthen the Arsenal backline even more after Petr Cech more than showed his age last season, and experienced fullback Stephan Lichtsteiner was also brought in on a free transfer from Juventus. Promising French midfielder Matteo Guendouzi has also been brought into the club and has impressed greatly in pre-season.
As for departures, fan favourites Santi Cazorla and Jack Wilshere left the club on free transfers. Cazorla, who rejoined former club Villareal, has been injured nearly two years now so offloading him makes sense on the pitch despite his impact off it. As for Jack Wilshere, the Arsenal academy product was always teasing his way into the first-team, but whenever he was close to making it there was always a little niggling injury to hold him back. Youth players Matt Macey, Chuba Akpom and Takuma Asano also left the club.
Pre-season form
Arsenal’s pre-season form has been promising of late, as the Gunners only lost one of their four International Champions Cup games and beating teams like PSG and Chelsea, with impressive performances by the likes of Alexandre Lacazette and rising youngster Emile Smith Rowe being the most eye-catching, Wit might only be pre-season, but with the tough opening games for Arsenal in the Premier League, the form can help the team be at their best.
What to expect this season
The first three games in the Premier League are some of the toughest for the team. They kick off against Manchester City, last year’s champions, and then tough tests against Chelsea and a much-improved West Ham side follow suit.
The goal for Arsenal this season is to get back into the top four. The Gunners haven’t been to the top European competition for a couple of years now. The battle for the top four is stronger than ever in the Premier League era. Six teams battling for four spots is an exciting prospect for fans but the heartbreak for the teams can be gut-wrenching.
With changes in management for the North London club for the first time in over 20 years, the quest for a Champions League place could be longer than expected.Another way to do get to the Champions League is concentrate on the Europa League. If you win Europe second competition, then you get automatic entry to the Champions League.
With the experience of Emery winning in the Europa League previously, it could be Arsenal’s Champions League ticket.
