11 points down on Unai Emery’s first 29 games – Arsenal are going backwards under Mikel Arteta

STATISTICS don’t always tell the full story and that’s probably just as well for Mikel Arteta. For anyone associated with the North London club, the numbers behind the Spaniard’s first 11 months in charge don’t make for comfortable reading, with Arteta taking 11 fewer points from his first 29 games at the helm than Unai Emery.

Not so long ago, it appeared Arsenal were heading in the right direction. The FA Cup final triumph over Chelsea after a semi-final victory over Manchester City hinted Arteta’s methods and ideas were starting to take root in the minds of his players. A decent start to the 2020/21 campaign backed up this notion.

Arsenal have won just one of their last five league fixtures, though, with Sunday’s goalless draw against Leeds United meaning the Gunners have drawn a blank in four of those games. If progress has taken place since the sacking of Emery almost exactly a year ago, it is increasingly difficult to see it. 

Arsenal after nine Premier League matches:

■ 11th in the table ■ One win in last five games ■ Seven points behind Tottenham ■ No open play goals in over 7.5 hours pic.twitter.com/DGZTiwSeyQ

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) November 22, 2020

If anything, Arsenal are going backwards. Defensively, the Gunners under Arteta are stronger as a unit. They are more difficult to break down, but the net gain of this specific improvement has been negligible. By tightening things up at the back, Arsenal have tightened up further up the pitch. On the whole, they are now easier to play against.

The Gunners are in the midst of a creativity crisis. As already referenced, they have scored just one goal in their last five Premier League games. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Arsenal’s star striker signed to a new £350,000-a-week contract just two months ago, has failed to find the net in open play since opening weekend. Arsenal currently rank among the bottom six teams in the Premier League for shots, shots on target, and chances created per match. Arteta’s side are toothless. 

All the while, Mesut Ozil remains exiled from the first team, omitted from Arsenal’s Premier League and Europa League squads for the 2020/21 season. Arteta’s decision to banish the German would make some sense if he had better options, but the Gunners have no other options in his position at all.

Even if Arsenal find a creative midfielder in January, with speculation swirling over potential moves for Dominik Szoboszlai and Yusuf Yazıcı, there is a culture of fear at the Emirates Stadium that must be eradicated. The Gunners are too safe under Arteta and it’s down to more than just the personnel at the Spaniard’s disposal. 

“We're a long way away, I’m afraid,” Arteta admitted in a recent interview when asked how far his Arsenal team are from his ultimate vision. “It's part of a process. The results have to be immediate, and the challenge we have with the club we are representing is that we have to win as quickly as possible every game in every competition.”

Arsenal took a leap of faith by hiring Arteta. They handed the 38-year-old former midfielder his first job in senior management on the back of little more than a recommendation from Pep Guardiola and a hunch he would make a good head coach. So far, Arteta has done little to justify the faith shown in him. 

This isn’t to say he won’t justify his appointment by the end of this season. There is still plenty time for Arsenal to turn things around. It’s feasible that the addition of a creative midfielder in January could propel the Gunners up the Premier League table in a similar manner to how the arrival of Bruno Fernandes’ arrival at Manchester United changed their fortunes last season.

However, Arteta has still to offer any answers to the questions posed of him upon taking over at Arsenal. In fact, recent results and performances have only added to the list of unanswered questions. Arteta’s appointment was meant to mark the start of a new era at the Emirates Stadium. As things stand, the new era has been just more of the same.

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