Arsenal and Chelsea come together during a period of seasonal candour when the table reveals the full scale of the demands facing Unai Emery and Maurizio Sarri. The pair both enjoyed a shimmer of early euphoria that suggested the distance to Liverpool and Manchester City might not be that great. There is no hiding from the cold, hard truths the Premier League delivers in the third week of January, however.
The poverty of Emery’s inheritance from the Arsene Wenger regime is made plain with a modest squad whose biggest name is all but unselectable, supported by an ownership unwilling to spend and an infrastructure in a worrying state of instability.
Chelsea are at least six points better off, yet Sarri’s attempts to restructure are hampered by uncertainty surrounding the future of his most important player and the disruptions inherent in fishing for a veteran striker to get his failed forward line firing. In the end, Chelsea missed the deadline to have loan signing Gonzalo Higuain available for the trip to the Emirates. As long as he keeps Eden Hazard out of Real Madrid’s hands, Sarri will always have hope.
Wenger absolutism
The deeper concerns are Emery’s, who is by increments is discovering the nature of the job he faces. The rolling back of Wenger’s absolutism by delegating responsibility across myriad hands was both necessary and unsettling. Emery is still assessing the strength of his squad and while he appears to have reached a positive conclusion about the disposal of Mesut Ozil, the loss of a player in whom the club had made such a huge financial investment, ultimately weakens the group.
Summer additions Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi have shown potential. But that is not what Arsenal require. After years of falling gradually behind resulting in the loss of Champions League football, the appointment of Emery was thought to represent a serious reboot, an enterprising, progressive coach with the intellectual oomph to challenge the gurus at Anfield and the Etihad.
Read more: Unai Emery backlash shows culture shift at Arsenal as Arsene Wenger’s philosophy fades
Arsenal fans thought they were done with middling husbandry. This was the supposed to be the start of a new push towards the restoration of The Arsenal. Instead they are back mixing and matching, making ends meet. Emery is familiar with the theme. At Almeria, Valencia and later Sevilla in Spain he overachieved working with what he had. At each institution he was unencumbered by gross expectation. At Arsenal, the terms of engagement do not allow for the funky vibe. Emery is at the heart of the establishment and expected to make an impact, however unrealistic the demand.
Six-day challenge
After three defeats and a draw over the Christmas period the season has shrunk into a six-day challenge Arsenal cannot afford to flunk. Defeat to Chelsea would leave Arsenal nine points outside Champions League qualification. Surely too much ground to make up in the present circumstances. Next up is Manchester United in the fourth round of the FA Cup, just about the last intruders you would want in your house during a crisis.
United’s travails under Jose Mourinho were essentially a gift for Arsenal and Chelsea. With Mourinho gone, parroting his malign drivel as a pundit in the Middle East, United are back swinging under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, plausible if not yet champion material and reducing the room for error among the teams above.
As the pursuit of Higuain and the intensified efforts to hang on to Callum Hudson-Odoi demonstrate, Chelsea’s problems are in front of goal. The promise of the record, 14-match unbeaten start disappeared with the mince pies. Since that sumptuous victory against City a month ago Chelsea have twice failed to score at home to Leicester and Southampton, and edged past Crystal Palace and Newcastle only by the odd goal.
The sacrifice of N’Golo Kante in favour of Jorginho as the defensive screen has further compromised Chelsea’s efficacy and is a tension you feel Sarri has not properly resolved. The penalty for experimenting was not so great with United labouring. The reheating of the red menace adds a degree of jeopardy for both teams at the Emirates. So a London derby that has little consequence for the top of the league is nevertheless significant, since neither team can afford to lose.
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