Tony Cascarino has explained why Unai Emery is struggling in Arsenal dressing room

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Tony Cascarino has told The Times that he believes Unai Emery has a major problem in the Arsenal dressing room – claiming that his struggle with the English language is failing to motivate the Gunners players.

Arsenal went five Premier League matches without a win on Saturday as they scraped a point at home to struggling Southampton. The Saints took the lead twice through Danny Ings and James Ward-Prowse.

But on both occasions, Alexandre Lacazette equalised – the second coming in the 96th minute. The Daily Mail have since claimed that The Gunners board have drawn up a three-man shortlist of Max Allegri, Mikel Arteta and Mauricio Pochettino.

Emery’s struggles with English are evident in press conferences. Cascarino suggested that Emery copies Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa and bring in a translator, as he just cannot see Emery being able to motivate his players in the dressing room.

“I think there is a problem with Unai Emery’s communication,” Cascarino said. “It is not just that his grasp of English isn’t great, but that he is not clear in what he is trying to say. I listen to him and he is speaking in riddles.

“I find it very hard to imagine him going into the dressing room and delivering clear, motivating messages to his players. It gives the players and the fans confidence that they know what they are doing. I just don’t see that with Emery.

“Good managers who don’t think they’ve got a good grasp of the language, like Mauricio Pochettino in his early days in this country or Marcelo Bielsa at Leeds, use translators to make sure their point is coming across loud and clear.”

TBR’s view – Cascarino is right, but is it too late for Emery?

Cascarino is bang on and Everton should have brought in a translator at some point. He may feel that he can speak English well enough, but it is a different story trying to motivate a team with passion and sincerity in an adopted language.

Even if Emery heeds Cascarino’s advice and brings in an assistant, surely it is too late. Arsenal sit in seventh, without a win in five league games and a huge 19 points off league leaders Liverpool after just 13 points.

Translators are key, but Emery’s time is surely up.