Unai Emery confident he can improve Arsenal’s mentality

Arsenal manager Unai Emery is confident he can improve his side’s mentality and insists he will stick to his “offensive” principles.

The Gunners’ inconsistent start to the season continued on Monday with a disappointing 1-0 defeat away to Sheffield United.

Can Emery turn things around at Arsenal? Five things to know…

• Unai Emery replaced Arsene Wenger in 2018.
• He guided the Gunners to last season’s Europa League final.
• But they went on to lose 4-1 to Chelsea, while also finishing fifth in the Premier League.
• The Spaniard is now being criticised for his selection policy and poor defending.
• But Emery believes he can find the right balance in his squad.

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Arsenal are now 10 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool and, having already settled for Europa League football for a third consecutive season, they once again lie outside the top four.

Questions are being asked among Arsenal supporters as to whether or not Emery can return the club to their former status as title challengers, in particular highlighting his intense rotation policy and ill-disciplined defending.

But the Spaniard is keen to stick to his attacking philosophy and is certain he can find the right balance with Arsenal’s mentality.

“We are improving defensively. We’re receiving less goals. It’s one objective we’re doing,” he told reporters.

“I don’t want to achieve the best defensive solution with one system or using only those four players. In the Europa League, we are using different players and they are also improving our defensive moments. It’s for all the players.

“Above all I want to continue being, because we want to be, an offensive team, improving defensively but offensive. Our mentality is to be offensive. I am going to get that balance I am sure. Little by little.

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“Now we are getting better as a competitive team, better defensively and we want also the next step to be to keep our capacity offensively. We are going to do that. After Monday we can be disappointed but it’s only 24 hours.

“Now we have another chance tomorrow to show where we are with some different players.”

The Gunners won’t have to wait long to try and set things right as they face Vitória Guimarães in the Europa League on Thursday.