‘He didn’t’: Pundit says ‘elite’ man didn’t get the respect he deserved at Arsenal

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Unai Emery is a very polarising figure in the world of football.

In some circles, he’s seen as a truly elite manager who has achieved so much at the top level, but others still only remember him as the Arsene Wenger replacement who only lasted 18 months.

Emery has, of course, since rebuilt his reputation after leaving Arsenal by doing a fantastic job at Aston Villa over the past year, and some are now starting to rethink their stance on the Spaniard.

Speaking on Premier League Productions, John Hartson has been discussing Emery’s time at Arsenal, and he said that the gaffer really didn’t get the respect he deserved at the Emirates.

Emery didn’t get the respect

Hartson shared his verdict on Emery.

“Yeah, he is, there’s something about Unai Emery isn’t there? He didn’t quite, but saying that he still got Arsenal to a Europa League final,” Hartson said.

“I don’t think he got the respect he deserved,” Hartson’s co-host said.

“No he didn’t, he beat Valencia in the semi-final, Napoli in the quarter-final in that period. He had an incredible record with Sevilla in the Europa League and he is an elite manager. Villa have a top manager there and he’s doing great things with them,” Hartson concluded.

Hindsight is 20/20

At the time, it really did seem as though Emery was doing a poor job at Arsenal, but, in hindsight, he really didn’t do a lot wrong.

Yes, the team were faltering by the time he left, but let’s not forget, it took a gigantic rebuild and four seasons for Mikel Arteta to improve on the fifth-placed finish Emery achieved in his first campaign.

The Spaniard really didn’t do that bad of a job. Sadly, it was just a case of the right man at the wrong time as Arsenal, in general, were a bit of a shambles at that point.