Finally, Unai Emery is gone. After months of despair, draws and desperation among the supporters, the powers that be have finally listened to our pleas and shown the manager the door. Freddie Ljungberg has taken charge on an interim basis, and in his first game in charge we drew 2-2 away to Norwich City. The result looked disappointing, as if nothing had changed since Emery’s reign.

However, the performance was encouraging. For once, we weren’t out-shot, and it was only down to our shambolic defending (which has recently become the cornerstone of our footballing style) that we conceded the two goals, and two points. We certainly look more motivated as a team under the Swede. But is he a long term option? And if not, who is?

Option One: Keep Freddie.

He couldn’t, could he? Well, don’t count him out immediately. Think about it. He knows the club like the back of his hand, and his passion for it is genuine and intense. He’s been working for the past while with our under 23s, and so he could be a great insight into developing our younger talent. A rebuild is needed, so why not do it from the inside. We have excellent young talent like Reiss Nelson, Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith-Rowe and so much more besides. As Arsene Wenger said, “We don’t buy superstars, we make them.” It would be nice to carry on this tradition.

Option Two: Mikel Arteta.

Another potential manager with strong connections to the club is Mikel Arteta. He was our captain for a good few years, before retiring in 2016. One of the main aspects which are appealing about Arteta is the fact that, since hanging up his playing boots, he’s been Pep Guardiola’s understudy at Manchester City, who have won the title twice in the time that he’s been there. Pep’s style is something which Arsenal attempted to copy under Emery, with very little success most of the time. But hiring a man with such deep insight into City’s tactics, who might be able to share any little secrets which his boss may have had, would, I think, be an excellent idea.

Option Three: Pochettino?!?

This is my dream appointment. If I’m being a proper football fan, which I do my best to be, then Pochettino is the one that makes the most sense. He has good Premier League experience, and he’s turned Tottenham into one of the best teams in the Premier League, and they’ve been a convincing presence in Europe as well. Yes, their start to the season was poor, but the calibre of player that the Argentine has developed in his time at the club – players like Kane, Son, and Dele Alli – are more than capable of regaining the form that saw them finish as runners up in the most difficult competition in the world. If he could do that to Arsenal, develop young players such as Holding, Tierney, Martinelli and Saka, and turn them into some of the best players in the English game, then he would be a roaring success. Forget about his trophy record at Spurs for the moment; the accolades will come, but we need to lay the foundation first, and Poch is just the man to do that.

Option 4: Max Allegri.

Unfortunately, there is only a very slim chance that we could ever get Pochettino, given his loyalty to the Lilywhites. And so, I believe Allegri would be an excellent choice. He’s been in charge for the great Juventus for a few years, and this leads me to think that he would be able to fix what is the most pressing issue at Arsenal: the defence. Juventus are famed for their defensive solidity, and to have a manager who knows exactly how to achieve such stability would be a massive boost for Arsenal. It’s what we’ve been lacking for years. Our attack is fine as it is, in my opinion, and if we were a bit less leaky I believe that we could be a real threat to the top four, and even the title itself.

Option 5: Someone else?

There are a good few managers around at the moment. Nuno Esperito Santo, for example, is doing a fine job with Wolves, and, with the help of a horde of Portuguese maestros, has made them exciting, dynamic, and properly good. It’s a risk, but possible. Ten Haag of Ajax could also be promising, for he has made the Dutch side into a real European powerhouse once again. I could go on and speculate some more, but the options are so varied. Arsenal are now a clean slate, because, realistically, nobody can do worse than Emery (As I wrote that, I saw the potential for a cruel jinx, but no matter. I’m optimistic). Let’s go with the flow, and hope that it can sweep us to glory once again.