Unai Emery, the successor to Arsene Wenger, believes that Arsenal needed to be shaken after 22 years in office.
Arsenal was in " free fall " and needed to be " shaken " after the 22-year term of French coach Arsene Wenger, said his successor, the Spaniard.
" Nowadays, it is very difficult for a technician to have a 22-year-old technician, the furniture has to be moved at every level of the club ," explained the Basque technician, " not because of past negligence, but to stimulate again everyone: shake things up, sweep under carpets, open windows, positively. "
Emery (47) said he did not discuss the state of the London team with Wenger (69): " I met him once, no more, I respect him a lot, but no matter the news he could have given me, I had to change things , he continued, Arsenal was in free fall, we had to stop and start scaling again. "
"Combine defense and attack"
For the former Paris SG technician, Arsenal must combine defensive solidity, one of his historical virtues, with the " enthusiastic attacks " of the Wenger era. " Over time, only the technical quality and the offensive freedom were treated, to the detriment of the defensive structure.What I want to do is to combine these two identities and be more competitive, " said the Spaniard.
" I want a team that knows how to take advantage of the spaces, play against the attack, or in small spaces, by managing to create imbalances on stopped actions.That is what we devote ourselves to: create a game idea, a style and be competitive, "he concluded.
After 12 days in the Premier League, Emery's team is fifth on the league with 24 points, eight points behind leader Manchester City. Arsenal moves Sunday to Bournemouth on behalf of the 13th day.