Arsenal new manager Unai Emery: How should Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham fans react to appointment?
We break down the new Arsenal manager's record against English clubs and current Premier League managers, during his time at Valencia, Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain
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Your support makes all the difference.Arsenal announced Unai Emery as the club's new head coach on Wednesday morning, jettisoning Manchester City assistant manager Mikel Arteta at the final hour to recruit the treble winning former Paris Saint-Germain boss.
Emery’s superior experience and excellent track record in European competition no doubt contributed to the decision of the Arsenal board – the Spaniard won three successive Europa League titles with Sevilla before moving to PSG in 2016.
But Emery’s record against English teams is not quite as impressive.
During his time at Valencia, Sevilla and then PSG, Emery has taken on six different English clubs – and has a winning record against only two of them.
In the 2011/12 season his Valencia side met Stoke City in the Europa League Round of 32, winning both legs 1-0 as they made their way to the semi-finals, where they lost 5-2 on aggregate to domestic rivals Atletico Madrid.
He also has a winning record against Liverpool. Emery’s Sevilla of course met the Reds in the 2016 Europa League final, where they fought back from a first-half Daniel Sturridge goal to win 3-1.
Unai Emery vs...
English clubs
- Arsenal (P2, D2)
- Manchester United (P2, L1, D1)
- Manchester City (P2, L2)
- Stoke City (P2, W2)
- Chelsea (P2, L1, D1)
- Liverpool (P1, W1)
Emery has also twice taken on Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal with PSG, in the group stages of last season’s Champions League. Both times the two sides drew: 1-1 in Paris and 2-2 in London. Arsenal went on to top the group.
The Spaniard has a negative record against three English clubs: he has twice managed against Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea – failing to win a single match.
In fact, Emery has never won a match against either Pep Guardiola or Jose Mourinho, with an average of just 0.4 points per game against the former and a miserly 0.2 against the latter.
His record against new West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini is poor too: he has won just three of their 12 encounters with an average of 1 point per game.
But he boasts winning records over the likes of Watford’s Javi Gracia, Newcastle’s Rafael Benitez and Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp.
And perhaps most importantly for Arsenal supporters, he has an impressive record against Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino, winning four of their seven matches against one another and losing just one.
Interestingly, Emery has suffered the most defeats against two men who were both linked with the Arsenal job before he got the nod over Arteta at the beginning of this week.
He has lost seven matches against both Luis Enrique and Diego Simeone, failing to beat the Atletico Madrid boss on 12 separate occasions.
Unai Emery vs...
Current Premier League managers
Jose Mourinho: P5, W0, L4, D1 (0.2 points per game)
Pep Guardiola: P10, W0, L6, D4 (0.4 PPG)
Manuel Pellegrini: P12, W3, L6, D3 (1 PPG)
Mauricio Pochettino: P7, W4, L2, D1 (1.86 PPG)
Javi Gracia: P6, W5, L0, D1 (2.67 PPG)
Rafael Benitez: P1, W1, L0, D0 (3 PPG)
Jurgen Klopp: P1, W1, L0, D0 (3 PPG)
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