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Sport

We’re in a good moment, Arsenal manager Emery says

Arsenal
By Victor Okoye
Abuja, April 2, 2019 (NAN) Arsenal manager Unai Emery on Monday expressed delight at the performance of his boys against Newcastle United, saying the team was in a good moment.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that goals from Aaron Ramsey and Alexandre Lacazette gave Arsenal a 2-0 win over Newcastle United on Monday.

The win lifted them to third place in the English Premier League (EPL) above rivals Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United.

“We were very consistent over 90 minutes. We didn’t concede any chances. We created and dominated the match. We are happy,” Emery told reporters in his post-match reaction.

“Each match is very difficult. We got three points and did it our way. It’s a nice challenge to win consecutive matches, it’s a new history and we’re creating our own way.

“We’re in a good moment. but each match is a new test.

“I hope Ramsey’s injury is not serious. The doctor is thinking it’s a small injury.

“We are improving. Today we are third, but the next match against Everton is difficult and our rivals are going to win a lot of matches,” he said.

Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez, on his part, admitted that his boys played against a better team, adding that there were little or no allowance for error when playing against a top side like Arsenal.

“We played against a good team and were fine for a while in the first half. We could avoid their goal, it was a little bit lucky.

“We had situations on the counter attack where we could be more dangerous, but we didn’t do it.

“The last 10 minutes they had chances to score but until the second goal we were pushing. It is a shame because you could feel the atmosphere was getting nervous.

“When you play top sides away it can be a mistake which makes the difference. In the end it was a mistake and we must learn from this and be ready for the next one.

“I think 38 points is enough [to stay up], 40 just in case. Hopefully it will be less,” he said.(NAN)
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(Edited by Olawale Alabi)

Sport

Emery hails Arsenal’s strength under pressure

Arsenal
London, March 15, 2019 (Reuters/NAN) Arsenal manager Unai Emery hailed his side’s ability to cope under pressure after they came back from a 3-1 loss in the first leg of their Europa League last 16 tie.

They beat French side Rennes 3-0 on Thursday to advance 4-3 on aggregate to the quarter-finals of Europe’s second-tier club competition.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang struck either side of an Ainsley Maitland-Niles goal as the North London side joined local rivals Chelsea.

Arsenal became only the second team in Europa League history to win a tie after losing the first leg 3-1.

“This comeback was very difficult, but I think the reaction was very good from every player,” Emery told reporters.

“We can be proud of our players today because it was a very difficult week — (Manchester) United on Sunday and today against Rennes.”

Arsenal’s 2-0 home English Premier League (EPL) win over Manchester United on Sunday kept alive their hopes of a top-four finish and a place in the UEFA Champions League next season.

“Playing under pressure is good, growing up under pressure — with each player playing like a team and feeling the difficult moments to give us our best performance,” Emery said.

Arsenal have missed out on UEFA Champions League football for the last two seasons, and their poor away record remains a big concern.

Although they have no more top-six teams to face in the EPL this season, they play more away than home fixtures.

Nevertheless, Emery said the UEFA Champions League, Europe’s premier club competition, was not his only focus.

The Europa League — which he won three times in a row from 2014 to 2016 as manager of Sevilla — also provides the chance for silverware.

“I said to the players today (Thursday), I’m excited (about) this competition, but it’s exciting not only for the possibility to go to the UEFA Champions League, but also because it’s one title,” he said.

He also took note of surprising results elsewhere.

“Today (Thursday), Inter (Milan) are out, Sevilla are out — a big surprise. And the last teams, they are all very important, and it’s going to be very difficult,” Emery said.

For his side, the focus must always be simple.

“We are going to think the same before every match. The next match is the most important for us,” Emery said.(Reuters/NAN)
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(Edited by Olawale Alabi)

Sport

Arsenal may seek loan deals in January, says Emery

Arsenal may seek loan deals in January, says Emery

Transfer

London, Jan. 11, 2019 (Reuters/NAN) Arsenal are looking at signing players who can ensure a strong finish to their Premier League campaign, but their transfer activity this month could be restricted to loan signings, manager Unai Emery has said.

The north London club are fifth on the table with 41 points, but Emery said fans could not expect permanent recruits in January.

They have missed out on top-four finishes and Champions League qualification in the previous two seasons.

“We cannot sign permanently. We can only loan players,” Emery told a news conference ahead of Saturday’s league trip to West Ham United.

The Spaniard pointed out the difficulties in recruiting players in the January transfer window, but said the club were keeping their eyes open.

“I know the club is working on possibilities of which players can help us with big performances like we need now.

“If we can find one player who can help us like we need, with the quality and a different player for getting in our squad, we are going to do it,” Emery added.

Arsenal’s transfer strategy in recent seasons has seen players run down their contract and leave for free, the latest being midfielder Aaron Ramsey.

The Welsh midfielder is set to join Juventus in the close season after failing to agree a new deal.

“I respect his decision a lot. My last conversation with him is very important,” Emery said.

“We both spoke about the situation with respect from him and from us. His response has been very good in training and matches with good performances.

“I want his behaviour and his focus to be on West Ham on Saturday.” (Reuters/NAN)

KIA/ERO/SA

Edited by Emmanuel Okara/Salif Atojoko

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Sport

New managers Emery, Pellegrini scrap for first point

New managers Emery, Pellegrini scrap for first point

London, Aug. 24, 2018 (Reuters/NAN) When Manuel Pellegrini and Unai Emery were appointed within a day of each other in May, neither could have envisaged where their teams now stand on the table.

Both teams met for the first time three months later and after two games, West Ham United and Arsenal are joint bottom and pointless.

Two games is no measure of a season, and both were handed the hardest possible opening fixture.

But their poor starts have given Saturday’s derby at the Emirates an unexpected edge as each scrambles to kickstart a response.

Both managers have arrived with a bagful of experience and trophies with Arsenal boss Emery a multiple Europa League winner with Sevilla.

West Ham’s Pellegrini is a Premier League champion with Manchester City.

Each can expect the time to ensure they adjust after securing the all-important first win.

Of the two, Emery has taken on arguably the greater challenge, succeeding Arsene Wenger at a club needing to reassert its top-four potential.

Former Arsenal players have a vocal place in the British media and are divided about what they have seen so far from the Spaniard.

Ray Parlour and Alan Smith both praised the way he was quick to make changes in the two defeats.

The coach substituted Aaron Ramsey after 53 minutes against Manchester City and Mesut Ozil in the 68th minute at Chelsea.

“That’s a strong statement to make in these early weeks, when everyone is trying to come to terms with the manager’s methods.

A lack of accountability, after all, had marred Arsene Wenger’s last few years,” wrote Smith in the Evening Standard on Friday.

“Irrespective of performance, you never got the feeling Ozil would be dropped under Wenger. If fit, the inconsistent playmaker seemed guaranteed a place.”

Under Wenger, Ramsey and Ozil started a combined total of 45 games last season.

However, the arrival of Lucas Torreira from Sampdoria and Matteo Guendouzi, arguably Arsenal’s best player in their first two games, from Lorient has added competition.

The fact that Torreira has not started yet has surprised another former player, Tony Adams, who felt that Emery has presided over two Wenger-like performances.

Adams claimed that Arsenal was lacking the sort of defensive steel the Uruguay World Cup midfielder was presumably bought to provide.

“I felt so sad about that. Everyone knows what Arsenal have been missing — it’s that steel, that resilience,” wrote Adams in The Sun.

“Whether Emery can coach it or not I don’t know yet, it is early days.”

Such arguments over Arsenal’s midfield will not be lost on former Gunner Jack Wilshere, who will play for West Ham on Saturday.

He was told in a 15-minute conversation with Emery that he did not feature in his plans after 197 appearances for the club.

Wilshere’s quality has never been in doubt but his poor injury record made a parting likely and he has faced a tough opening to his West Ham career.

The lack of pace at the heart of West Ham’s midfield, where Wilshere has partnered Mark Noble, has been questioned by pundits and fans.

Pellegrini is likely to be forced into a change on Saturday with captain Noble unlikely to be fit, with Pedro Obiang set to come in.

West Ham spent around 105 million pounds on new players in the close season and Pellegrini said he is unconcerned about the poor start.

“If you review my career, at Villarreal, at Malaga, at Manchester City, the first games that I managed were never good games,” he said.

He acknowledged that some of West Ham’s defensive work against Bournemouth had been unimpressive.

Any repeat on Saturday will sharply crank up the pressure. (Reuters/NAN)

KIA/SN

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Edited by Silas Nwoha

Sport

New Arsenal manager Emery ‘proud’ to follow Wenger’s legacy

Unai Emery new Arsenal Coach
Emery

London, May 23, 2018 (Reuters/NAN) Unai Emery paid a glowing tribute to the legacy of former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger as he held his first news conference hours after being named as the Frenchman’s successor on Wednesday.

Speaking in stilted English after being introduced to the media by club CEO Ivan Gazidis at the Emirates Stadium, the Spaniard also said he was proud to follow in Wenger’s footsteps.

“It’s a big challenge but I’ve worked also with other big projects and for me I am proud to be here and to work after Arsene Wenger,” he told reporters.

“In my career every year I grow up with new challenges and for me the challenge is a dream come true.”

Arsenal’s first new manager since Wenger, who was also 46 at the time, was introduced to a quizzical media in 1996, Emery spoke highly of the man he has replaced.

“Thanks Arsene Wenger for your legacy, for all the coaches in all the world he is revered and I learn with him all the things in football,” he said.

Emery was one of eight candidates who went through an extensive interview process, Gazidis said.

The Spaniard won three consecutive Europa Leagues with Sevilla before spending two years at Paris St Germain, winning a domestic treble this past season.

“He is a very good fit,” said Gazidis. “In the personal meetings Unai was incredibly impressive, he had a detailed knowledge of the club and was very well prepared.”

Emery, who has won eight trophies since 2013-14, opted against discussing individual players such as Jack Wilshere who is out of contract.

However, he did offer some clue as to what kind of football Arsenal fans can expect.

The club, under Emery, would try to regain its place in England’s elite after missing out on the top four for the second successive season.

“In my career I am very demanding of myself as well as the people at the club and the players,” he said.

“The history here is one thing, they love to play with possession of the ball. I like this personality and when we don’t have the ball I want a squad to play with intensive pressure.

“Two important things are possession of the ball and pressing when you haven’t got it.”

Emery faces an important close season of squad tweaking but without the huge sums of money available at PSG.

He was not afraid to set lofty targets, though.

“I believe we can grow with the players we have. The objective is to work hard together and with these talented players to work,” he said.

“It’s very important for the club, after two years outside the Champions League, to work to be the best team in the Premier League and also in the world.” (Reuters/NAN)

KIA

Sport

Arsenal appoint Emery as new manager to succeed Wenger

Arsenal appoint Emery as new manager to succeed Wenger
Appointment
By Kayoed Adebiyi
London, May 23, 2018 (Reuters/NAN) Arsenal have appointed former Paris St Germain coach Unai Emery as the new manager of the club, with the Spaniard succeeding the long-serving Arsene Wenger, the Premier League club announced on Wednesday.
Emery, who joined PSG in June 2016, left the French club at the end of this season, having led them to a domestic treble.
The 46-year-old had previously guided Spanish side Sevilla to three Europa League titles.
“Unai has an outstanding track record of success throughout his career.
“He has also developed some of the best young talents in Europe and plays an exciting, progressive style of football that fits Arsenal perfectly,” Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis said in a statement.
“His hard work and passionate approach and his sense of value on and off the pitch make him the ideal person to take us forward,” Gazidis said.
Wenger departed the North London club at the end of last season after nearly 22 years at the helm, helping the team capture three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups. (Reuters/NAN)
KIA/SA
Edited by Salif Atojoko
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