Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Football London
Football London
Sport
Jamie Kemble

Mikel Arteta and Unai Emery's Arsenal records compared ahead of Villarreal clash

Mikel Arteta suffered his latest blow as Arsenal boss on Friday night after watching his side slip to a 1-0 home defeat to Everton.

The Gunners were defeated thanks to a sloppy error from goalkeeper Bernd Leno, who fumbled a cross into his own net out of nowhere.

Arsenal enjoyed plenty of the ball against the Toffees but struggled to manage any penetration, and they could now drop out of the top half as a result of the defeat, depending on what happens elsewhere this weekend.

And with that in mind, fans on social media have been casting their minds back to former boss Unai Emery, who was sacked as Gunners boss after around 18 months in charge.

In his last full season in charge, Emery guided Arsenal to a fifth-place finish, finishing one point behind Tottenham in fourth, and he was sacked after a poor start which left his side in eighth place after 13 games, eight points behind Chelsea in fifth.

After taking over from Emery, Arteta couldn't change Arsenal's position, finishing eight, 10 points behind Chelsea in fourth, but he did win the FA Cup to secure Europa League qualification.

As we approach the end of this season, the Gunners are in ninth, nine points behind Chelsea but having played a game more than everyone but Manchester City, Tottenham and Fulham.

So far, Arteta has a win percentage of 50.63%, winning 40 of the 79 games he has taken charge of, losing 22 and drawing 17.

By comparison, during Emery's time at the club, he won 55.1% of his games, winning 43 of his 78 games in charge, losing 19 and drawing 16.

That superior record has plenty of fans discussing Emery on social media today, but the ultimate test could come on Thursday when Arsenal and Villarreal face off in the Europa League semi-finals first leg.

The tie will see Emery and Arteta go head-to-head over two legs for a place in the Europa League final, and Arsenal must win the competition if they want to qualify for Europe ahead of next season.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.