The seven managers Arsenal interviewed before hiring Emery
A report from The Athletic has revealed that Massimiliano Allegri, Mikel Arteta, Thierry Henry, Julen Lopetegui, Ralf Rangnick, Jorge Sampaoli and Patrick Vieira were not only shortlisted but interviewed for the Arsenal job back in 2018.
David Ornstein claims that seven interviews took place before the club eventually decided to hire Unai Emery.
He adds that Antonio Conte, Eddie Howe, Maurizio Sarri and Brendan Rodgers were all discussed as options, before the club whittled down their shortlist.
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Arsenal fans will be thinking about what could’ve been for them if the club opted for a different manager.
Amid all the current unrest under Unai Emery, you can’t help but feel that there were better options available.
In Allegri, the Gunners have somebody who is a born winner. His brand of football may not be the most exciting on the list, but he left Juventus with a trophy cabinet full of medals – something Arsenal are craving to get back to.
Rangnick is one of the more interesting options named. His expertise behind the scenes could’ve been a useful asset for the Gunners to call upon.
Henry, Arteta and Vieira would’ve all been popular appointments no doubt, but it’s fair to say that it would’ve been a job too soon for all three, with all of the ex-Gunners stars in the infancy of their coaching careers.
When you look further down at the list of the names that were also considered, Conte may have been the perfect short-term appointment. He has proven from his time at Chelsea that he can get every last inch of quality out of a player and take them to a level that is greater than the sum of their parts.
Eddie Howe and Brendan Rodgers are two very highly thought of young British coaches, who have both made a great start in this season’s Premier League campaign at their respective clubs.
The pressure is mounting on Emery and the further that Arsenal’s form continues to dip, the more and more it looks like the club made a mistake.