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The new Arsenal manager, Unai Emery, has been spotted adopting a very different style from his predecessor, Arsene Wenger, in the team training sessions. He is much more vocal than the Frenchman and makes sure his players go all out. As of now, Arsenal have clinched two victories in their two pre-season friendly matches against weaker opponents.
The real challenge will come when Arsenal face Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain in Singapore for the International Championship Cup later this month. However, with many of the World Cup stars missing from the squad for the Singapore tour, Arsenal would expect to face a second-choice team line-up by their opponents. Nonetheless, it is a great opportunity for the players to test themselves and for Emery to see who to keep in his side.
Arsenal's top priority is now to find a way to get back into the Champions League. The 46-year-old manager admitted that he is aiming to get his hands on the highly coveted Premier League trophy as well. He knows the pressure to perform and guide the team back into the top four is on his shoulders. He has signed quite a number of players in this transfer window and everyone would surely want to see the result of this spending.
While some of the World Cup stars are still on vacation, the rest of the squad have been put through stern training sessions in order to for them be in the best physical condition. Emery wants nothing but the best from his players. Now, with such a talented squad, can the Spaniard turn things around at The Emirates?
Listed below are five Arsenal players that everyone should absolutely look out for next season. They could well be the game changers for Emery's first campaign in England.
#5 Bernd Leno
The goalkeeper is expected to make his second appearance as an Arsenal player when his team travels to Singapore. Prior to travelling, the German has already represented his club in a closed-door pre-season match against Crawley Wood. In the 2017-18 season, the club looked particularly unstable at the back, with Petr Cech and David Ospina standing between the two posts. Unai Emery decided to bring in Leno at once, hoping to rectify the issue as soon as possible.
Leno has already started training with his new teammates at Colney. The 26-year-old was initially named in Germany's preliminary World Cup squad, but was dropped by Joachim Low thereafter. He had progressed through Stuttgart's youth academy and later joined Bayer Leverkusen. In his last season for the German club, Leno kept 12 clean sheets in 38 games. He was considered one of the best performers for his club and constantly put up consistent performances for them.
According to Squawka, the German has conceded fewer goals per match in comparison to Cech. Besides that, Leno has a strength that most Arsenal keepers consider as their weakness: he has been an excellent penalty saver in his career in Bundesliga.
Among the keepers in Bundesliga, Leno has managed to save the most number of spot kicks. It looks like saving penalties is one of his many fortes and given Leno's age, it is truly the time for him to shine in the Premier League.
Arsenal will open their PL campaign against title holders, Manchester City, next month. Although the likes of Kevin de Bruyne, Sergio Aguero, and Gabriel Jesus are expected to miss out on the starting line-up, Leno could take the opportunity to prepare himself to face a strong team on the day.
#4 Kostantinos Mavropanos
Sokratis Papastathopoulos was brought in to help the young Greek centre-back, Konstantinos Mavropas, develop into a more professional player who suited to play for a top club in Europe. Sokratis has loads of experience in Bundesliga and has been regarded as a solid defender for Borussia Dortmund.
In Wenger's last few matches as Arsenal boss, he opted to start Mavropanos and even gave him the opportunity to play against a huge rival, Manchester United.
Certainly, at just 20 years of age, the young defender still has a lot to learn. Even though the Gunners lost against United, fans were unarguably glad to see that they could have a top-class young defender on the team. With captain Laurent Koscielny set to miss the first half of the Premier League campaign, Emery would have to turn to his young centre-backs and find the best partnership possible in the back line.
Fans are adamant that Shkodran Mustafi is to be sold after his horrible displays for the club last season. That would mean that the Gunners are left with Rob Holding, Calum Chambers, Mavropanos, and their new signing, Sokratis, next season.
It will be a huge season for the young Greek international who is likely to be given chances to shine and get his name in Emery's good books. No one is sure of the manager's game plan for the backline as of now, as more players such as Nacho Monreal and Stephan Lichtsteiner have not yet returned to training. He could change the formation or stick to a conventional back four after accessing the skills of all his players.
#3 Aaron Ramsey
Aaron Ramsey has yet to sign a contract extension with Arsenal and it is causing many Gooners to worry about his future at the club. With Jack Wilshere's departure, Ramsey is expected to be given the nod to start in the centre of the midfield for every single match. The Welsh international has predominantly enjoyed playing in the heart of the pitch, where he can help pull the strings for his side's attack.
At the same time, Emery has also identified Ramsey to be a key and essential player in his plans for the club. Over the past season, the midfielder had an excellent campaign in the Europa League. He scored four times and created two assists in six Europa League matches. The Gunners will once again be playing the second-tier European competition, after missing out on Champions League qualification spots for the second consecutive season.
Ramsey is likely to be deployed predominantly in the Premier League, at least until the advanced stages of the European competition beckon. He has been seen as a pivotal player for the team and could soon be given the captain's armband.
Fitness issues and injuries have both been a concern throughout Ramsey's career at the Emirates. If he is able to shrug them off and stay fit in the whole campaign, he could have a big and fulfilling season ahead.
The 27-year-old has often earnt Wenger's praise. He enjoys holding onto the ball and is very strong in making key passes. For the upcoming season, he could be playing alongside Mesut Ozil and sit right in front of Lucas Torreira or Granit Xhaka in the Gunners' midfield. Although he is not the best tackler, Ramsey has the energy and motivation to get back every time his side needs to defend, doing everything he can to stop the opponents.
The Welshman has now developed to become a dominant midfielder and is at the peak of his career. Fans should absolutely keep a lookout of what he is capable of doing in the upcoming season.
#2 Alexandre Lacazette
The Frenchman narrowly missed out on Didier Deschamps' winning World Cup squad and thus, had to watch his nation lift the trophy from home. Lacazette was definitely upset that he did not travel to Russia to represent his nation and now, will do all he can to enhance his career at the club level.
The striker, who was signed for a hefty fee last season, did not quite live up to the expectations of the fans. He paled in comparison to Harry Kane and Mohamed Salah, who led the goalscoring charts. Towards the end of the season, though, the 27-year-old seemed to have formed a pretty good understanding with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, returning to his to his goalscoring form.
In the two pre-season matches, the former Lyon player scored four goals and seems to have started right where he left off last season. Former Arsenal manager, Wenger, had previously claimed that Lacazette's knee injury had been the reason why he lost form in the middle of the 2017-18 season.
Ever since he made his return from the injury, the French forward indeed got back to his scoring ways. In the last six games which featured him in the Premier League, the number nine scored five times for the Gunners. It was thus considered a pretty good ending to his first season in England. At the same time, it also got the fans excited through knowing that the club's striker is not shy in front of goal after all.
Emery surely has plans to make good use of Lacazette's partnership with Aubameyang in the upcoming season. The prolific Ligue 1 goalscorer would certainly be eager for the campaign to start so that he can prove his value, so as to ensure that he stays in the starting eleven under the new manager.
#1 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
For many previous seasons, the Gunners had been attempting to get Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to play for Arsenal. At last, the striker was signed by the Gunners in January 2018. The Gabon international has been widely known for his knack for scoring consistently in the Bundesliga. Now that he has moved on to the Premier League, he could be a strong contender for the Golden Boot award.
In his 13 appearances for Arsenal, Aubameyang has scored 10 times and provided four assists. During the initial stages of his games, there seemed to be miscommunication between him and the rest of the attacking players: they misplaced passes and were unable to find one another at times. However, that was simply the process of adapting to a new player in the team. Now, after half a year in North London, the rest of the team would have gotten to know him better and understand how to exploit his talents.
One special thing about the 29-year-old is that he does not need to have all the time on the ball in order to find the net. As long as someone delivers it to him fast enough and in the box, he will find a way to score. The forward enjoys keeping things straightforward and ensures he hits the target almost everytime he is given the opportunity to do so.
It is reported that Emery had punished Aubameyang and the rest of the players for missing chances during training. Thus, the Gabon international knows he would have to face the music from his manager should he not score in games.
With the reputation as one of the world's most prolific strikers, Aubameyang will be the player to look out for in the upcoming games.
