The “Merci Arsène” billboards were still up in the club shop on the day in May when Unai Emery suddenly appeared at the Emirates Stadium. Wearing his newly fitted Arsenal blazer and tie, the Spaniard was given a guided tour and a leather-bound book about the club’s history, and was ushered into an office hastily adorned with a brushed steel plate bearing his name. After one of the longest-running relationships in contemporary football, this summer has been all about how quickly, and how deeply, Emery could build up a whole new set of connections to replace those everyone knew a little too well. For any new manager, finding the right balance between introducing your own methodology...
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