LONDON • Unai Emery believes Pep Guardiola is the best coach but sees the Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur models as the way forward for Arsenal.
The manager is eight months into the Gunners job, and ahead of today's reverse with Guardiola's Manchester City, who beat him in his first game in English football, he spoke about drawing inspiration from the champions' title rivals.
He explained he cannot spend big like City, evidenced by his lone January signing of Denis Suarez on loan from Barcelona following a summer window that saw them go for less established players.
"I remember three years ago, Liverpool were playing in the Europa League final, they were in the top four in the Premier League, and their progress is very good progress and now they are the favourites," Emery was reported as saying.
"Maybe Manchester City is a different example, because they bought a very important lot, with paying a lot and maybe we can't do that now like that.
"But we can also do one way similar to Liverpool, similar to Tottenham - doing more with young players, using well players who can improve with us.
A MODEL FOR PROGRESS
"... We can also do one way similar to Liverpool, similar to Tottenham - doing more with young players, using well players who can improve with us.
UNAI EMERY, Arsenal manager, on learning from league rivals to find a good model to develop his team to challenge Manchester City.
"We are doing that. We need time but also we need to be very demanding of ourselves."
And there is no man who is more demanding than Guardiola, 48, whom he has never beaten.
Said Emery, 47: "I have analysed a lot of teams and coaches and I think it's difficult to find one coach who is better than Guardiola."
Guardiola returned the compliments about his fellow Spaniard.
He told Sky Sports: "I've never been with him in his clubs but my impression from outside is that he's a manager who is well prepared."
Guardiola is demanding a big improvement from his team because he knows just how crucial the next eight days will be in determining whether the title ends up in the trophy room at Anfield or the Etihad Stadium come May 12.
After hosting Arsenal, they travel to Everton on Wednesday before playing Chelsea at home four days later. If City win all three games, the worst-case scenario is that they will be two points behind Liverpool, who have no midweek fixture.
The Reds play West Ham tomorrow, before playing Bournemouth at home five days later.
City's accuracy has dipped this term. Last season, they averaged 2.79 goals per game compared with 2.63 this term. Their shooting accuracy has also diminished, with 38 per cent of their shots hitting the target rather than 40 per cent.
So it is just as well that they are facing a team with a defensive injury crisis. Guardiola was annoyed by City's failure to break down Newcastle United's rigid and compact defence in their 2-1 loss last Tuesday but, otherwise, he was giving little away.
He said: "Many details we didn't do quite well. Of course we analyse, we talk about our game and see what we have to improve, like the way we have to attack some defensive structures like Newcastle, but it will be different against Arsenal."
Emery did let on more, saying: "Usually we want to have more possession than the opposition but, against City, maybe it is not possible because they impose usually the possession first and the positioning. But we are going to try to not let them have the possession very easy and also don't let them have the positioning better than us.
"But this detail is a big detail!"
THE TIMES, LONDON
MANCHESTER CITY V ARSENAL
Singtel TV Ch102 & StarHub Ch227, tomorrow, 12.30am
Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi says he will miss the rest of the season after suffering a ruptured Achilles in Monday's 2-2 draw against Burnley. Hudson-Odoi limped off helped by two members
Chelsea's Hudson-Odoi says he will miss rest of season
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on December 31, 2018, with the headline 'Spurs paid the price for complacency: Pochettino'. Print Edition | Subscribe
Spurs paid the price for complacency: Pochettino
Despite falling 118-109 to the Toronto Raptors in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday, the Golden State Warriors are still slight favorites to win the series. According to Caesars, the Warriors
Cubs are on a power surge, but it's not paying off in the win
One year on from defeat to Real Madrid in the final, Jürgen Klopp tasted victory as Liverpool overcame Spurs in a scrappy Champions League final on Saturday. The game burst into life early on
Stadium - liverpoolfc.com
Women's Team Sues Over 'Institutionalized' Discrimination Players for the US women's national soccer team have filed a federal gender much of the pay disparity between the men's and women
Team USA women's soccer players fight for equal pay - 60
Man City news and transfers LIVE Pep Guardiola gives injury news ahead of Crystal Palace. Pep Guardiola has provided an injury update on Manchester City duo Bernardo Silva and Aleks Zinchenko.
Silva and Zinchenko 'better' as Man City head to Crystal Palace
Latest Raffaele Maiello #8 news, stats, photos and videos on MSN Sport
Milan draw another blank in Frosinone stalemate - Football
10-man Arsenal slump in Rennes, Sevilla held (Reuters) - Arsenal took an early lead but a red card for Sokratis Papastathopoulos changed the game as the Gunners slumped to a 3-1 defeat at Rennes on a night of tightly-contested Europa League last-16 first-leg ties on Thursday.
10-man Arsenal slump in Rennes, Sevilla held - Football News
Football: Tunisian club win African title after final abandoned over video assistant referee JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - Esperance won the CAF Champions League in Tunisia Saturday (June 1) after Wydad Casablanca refused to continue playing on 60 minutes because VAR was unavailable to judge a disallowed equaliser.
Tunisian club win African title after final abandoned over VAR
Arsenal and Chelsea player ratings: Star players as Premier League sides reach Europa League final Chelsea beat Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties, while Arsenal saw off Valencia in Spain
Football: Chelsea beat Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties to
Man City's Sterling treated differently by British media, says Pogba. Speaking ahead of France's Euro 2020 qualifier against Moldova on Friday, the Manchester United midfielder also said
Manchester City's Raheem Sterling treated differently by
MADRID, May 22 (Reuters) - The wife of Spain's World Cup-winning captain Iker Casillas, Sara Carbonero, has announced that she has undergone surgery for cancer just three weeks after the
Football: After goalie Casillas' heart attack, wife Sara says
tellmysport.com/soccer/football-after-goalie-casillas-heart-attack-wife-sara-says-she-has-had-ovarian-cancer-op/
Football: After goalie Casillas' heart attack, wife Sara says she has had ovarian cancer op 05/22/2019 Soccer MADRID (REUTERS) - Sara Carbonero, the wife of Spain's World Cup-winning football captain Iker Casillas, has announced that she has undergone surgery for cancer just three weeks after the goalkeeper suffered a heart attack.
After Casillas heart-attack, wife says she has had cancer op
Are there direct trains from Derby to London St Pancras International? Yes, it is possible to travel from Derby to London St Pancras International without having to change trains. Use our journey planner above to get direct train times from Derby to London St Pancras International.
London To Derby
AD
Football: Manchester United move into Premier League's top
0 Kommentare:
Kommentar veröffentlichen