Terrace Talk: Our new boss’s distaste for superstar culture a hopeful sign

With many Gooners struggling to come to terms with the seemingly imminent appointment of Arteta as our new manager, the shock announcement of Unai Emery came straight out of left-field.

There I was trying to convince myself that Arteta might just prove himself to be Guardiola Mark II (which in truth might not be much use, without the likes of Man City’s seemingly endless bankroll!), whilst unable to contain my fears he might lack the necessary dominant personality and might struggle to command authority, in a squad that still contains former teammates.

To be frank, I know little more about Unai Emery than is revealed on his Wikipedia entry, but I do know that I’m greatly relieved that he’s not Arteta because unlike our former midfielder Emery might at the very least be able to sweep into the Arsenal dressing room like a breath of fresh air. Personally, my main priority for the managerial appointment was that the board did not play it too safe, by appointing someone who was likely to offer us little more than a tweak on the same old, same old of the past few depressing seasons of under-achievement.