3 reasons why Nuno Espirito Santo is not the right man for Arsenal

Wolverhampton Wanderers boss, Nuno Espirito Santo
Wolverhampton Wanderers boss, Nuno Espirito Santo

#2 Patchy Record at Bigger Clubs and Crises

Nuno Espirito Santo as Porto manager
Nuno Espirito Santo as Porto manager

Carrying on with his pragmatism, Santo has a very patchy record in addressing problems. Arsenal is a club in crisis and needs to desperately address their balance of play on the pitch. In his first club at Rio Ave in Portugal, Santo was seen to be over-achieving.

The pressure mounted when he moved to Valencia. His first season was a success and he finished fourth with Valencia making the Champions League. His second season was more torrid as he simply failed to provide answers as Valencia's organisation as a unit faltered and the attack failed.

In his 13 games in the 2015/16 season, Santo's side won 5 times but failed to convince fans. His side was inconsistent and did not live up to the promise from the previous season's success. His relationship with the fans was soon fractured. Struggling to keep up, he resigned from his position after a 1-0 loss to Sevilla on 29 November 2015.

Moving to FC Porto, he could not win any silverware. FC Porto was eliminated early in the cup competitions by lower opposition. He experimented with his tactics at Porto but reverted to a more direct style after being dissatisfied with his side's style. He left at the end of his first season at Porto by mutual consent but in the meantime suffered a morale busting defeat on the last day of the season.

The 45-year-old's current role with Wolves was his next job. As discussed earlier Wolves have possessed a side of superior quality in the Championship and he has dealt with increased expectations well. But is also worth pointing out that Wolves have consistently failed to beat sides below them in the Premier League, a problem which Arsenal seem to have as well. For example, last season Wolves lost to Cardiff City, Crystal Palace, Burnley, Brighton and Huddersfield Town (twice to the miserable Terriers).

This season Arsenal has dropped points against Crystal Palace, Sheffield Utd and Watford. So, can Santo bring something so different? His record with youth is hard to judge though he has played the likes of Morgan White-Gibbs quite frequently. His squad at Valencia was fairly young but he failed to instil belief in the players for continued success.

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Edited by Habil Ahmed Sherule