Unai Emery has been a success at Arsenal in his debut season

While the Premier League still has 6 weeks to go it does seem that Unai Emery has done a very good job if not always brilliant one at Arsenal.

These are still strange times at the club, coming to terms with Arsene Wenger leaving after 22 years, the Frenchman was such a part of the club and its history. So having any new manager come in was always going to be judged, good or bad. But on the face of it Emery has done a great job considering this is his debut season.

Tonight Arsenal will play Newcastle and will start as the favourites to win. They are at home where they haven’t actually lost in the league since being beaten by Manchester City on the opening day of the season- that’s quite a record for a non title challenger. What is significant is that if the Gunners do win tonight they would go 3rd and 2 points clear of Manchester United and their great rival Tottenham, so this would be a statement win.

Emery has done well in the transfer market and has a calmness and assurance about him, which has at times frustrated the Arsenal faithful but he also garners there respect too. We shouldn’t forget that Arsenal also have a realistic chance of winning the Europa League and they have made it to the quarter finals. Emery is of course a specialist in winning the competition, it was his hat trick of successes in it which led PSG to sign him up. How ironic too would it be if Emery won in his first season a competition that Wenger couldn’t in 20 plus years.

What will also be assured this season is that Arsenal will easily past the 64 point mark that Wenger’s Arsenal achieved last season, evidently then an improvement. If Arsenal end up with no trophies at the end of the season but qualify for the Champions League and with more league wins under their belt, then this season has to be deemed as a successful one for the club. Little steps granted but going in the right direction which under Wenger they weren’t.

It will be fascinating to see who Arsenal buy in the summer and to be fair Emery should only be judged in his 2nd season with the club as he gets his feet under the table. The pressure to add to the trophy cabinet will be greater too. For now though Arsenal will be aiming for 3rd place tonight.