Unai Emery has been sacked by Arsenal after 18 months in charge.
It was widely reported that he’s been close to losing his job for a while now and a 2-1 defeat at home to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League on Thursday confirmed that.
That result means the Gunners are winless in seven games heading into this weekend’s Premier League fixture with Norwich City, their worst run since 1992.
Freddie Ljungberg has stepped into the role of first team manager on a temporary basis until a permanent manager can be hired.
A club statement from Arsenalreads:
“We announce today that the decision has been taken to part company with our head coach Unai Emery and his coaching team.
“Our most sincere thanks go to Unai and his colleagues who were unrelenting in their efforts to get the club back to competing at the level we all expect and demand. We wish Unai and his team nothing but future success.
“The decision has been taken due to results and performances not being at the level required.
“We have asked Freddie Ljungberg to take responsibility for the first team as interim head coach. We have full confidence in Freddie to take us forward.
“The search for a new head coach is underway and we will make a further announcement when that process is complete.”
The news will be welcomed by a majority of the club’s supporters.
In recent weeks, Arsenal’s fanbase has turned toxic, with many calling for Emery to go much like they did in the final few months of Arsene Wenger’s reign.
Against Frankfurt, some supporters were seen holding ‘Emery Out’ signs and their calls have now been answered.
Although Ljungberg will take charge of the Premier League trip to Norwich, it’s expected that Arsenal will bring in a new manager very soon.
Arsenal’s decision to dismiss Emery came little more than a week after north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur replaced head coach Mauricio Pochettino with Jose Mourinho.
Emery took over from Arsene Wenger, after the Frenchman left following 22 years in charge of the Gunners, and initially looked to improve things in north London.
The former PSG manager had a good run in the Europa League last season, having previously won the competition three times with Sevilla.
They eventually reached the final in Azerbaijan in May but lost to fellow Londoners Chelsea 4-1, which denied them the chance of getting into this season’s Champions League, having also finished fifth in the Premier League.
By David Kofi Tei
