Oh Unai, just what have you done? If the Spaniard wasn't already a villain in north London he certainly is now, having damaged Arsenal's title hopes in quite some style on Sunday.
As the full-time whistle rung out at the Emirates with the Gunners dispatched 2-0 on their own patch by Aston Villa, the Emirates Stadium looked empty.
Ironically, Emery is used to that sight. During the latter stages of his tenure with Arsenal, supporters were alienated and refused to attend matches. Their home was a toxic environment, largely due to the way the club had played since Arsene Wenger left.
The now Villa boss eventually took his leave and was replaced by Mikel Arteta, a man who has engineered two title-challenging squads in the last two seasons.
However, after the events of Sunday afternoon, it may not be enough to topple Manchester City. Following what happened last term, this feels all too familiar.
Where things went wrong for Arsenal
With Liverpool having slipped to a defeat just hours before, beaten 1-0 by Crystal Palace, this was a wonderful opportunity for Arsenal to potentially turn this into a two-horse title race.
City had beaten Luton Town a day before and begun the day at the top of the table. They consequently ended the weekend top as well, thanking both Palace and Villa for some massive favours.
But, where did things go wrong? Well, it's hard to tell really. Arsenal dominated the first half and truth be told, should have been a few goals ahead when the half-time whistle sounded.
Leandro Trossard somehow struck an effort at Emi Martinez from close range, Gabriel Jesus headed an effort into the side setting, Kai Havertz saw a number of efforts saved and Bukayo Saka, ever effervescent, curled just wide of the far post.
That all happened in frantic 45 minutes where, but for a goal being scored, Arsenal looked like title challengers.
The second half, therefore, was inexcusable. Arteta's men lost control and handed the ascendency to the visitors. Villa began to have more of the possession and through Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins late on, wrapped up a famous victory to hand them a massive boost in their bid for Champions League football.
Bizarrely, Emery said he didn't need to make any changes at the interval. Asked whether he'd made any alterations, the Spanish coach noted: "No, the same. The first half was the same game plan, only the first half we didn’t do because the opponent was pushing being more successful on the pitch as well tactically.
"The second half we tried to continue building up, trying to avoid the press and then trying to maybe find Zaniolo with the long ball, the hold up was fantastic."
Thus, was this a defeat all of Arsenal's undoing? Quite probably. This was a worrying loss, no visiting team has looked this dominant in N5 perhaps since Brighton last term.
Changes will have to be made, and that starts by pondering what to do with Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Arsenal's biggest underperformer against Aston Villa
This game called for Arsenal's title-winning players, the likes of Zinchenko and Gabriel Jesus to stand up and take the game by the scruff of the neck.
Sadly, they both left the pitch having severely underperformed for Arteta. It's a shame, particularly for Jakub Kiwior who had performed so admirably when his positional colleague had been absent through injury.
He put in a series of exceptional performances during Arsenal's best run of the season to date. Across handsome wins against Burnley, Newcastle and Sheffield United, the Pole registered a goal and two assists, proving himself a player who can contribute efficiently in the final third.
Being an inverted full-back, we know Zinchenko can do that, but it's defensively where Kiwior looked far more adept. Rarely did he look rushed, rarely did he give the ball away, rarely did he look uncomfortable.
Well, contrast that to the Ukranian's display on Sunday and it's night and day. Handed a dismal 4/10 match rating by 90min for his performance, James Benge of CBS was rather apt with his assessment of the former Man City star's display.
He noted; "the quietly good moments didn’t come close to outweighing the unmissably bad."
That has been the story of Zinchenko's Arsenal career. Yes, he has changed the way Arsenal play, but is it really worth it for an error-stricken player who consistently cedes possession? Arguably not.
He set the tone for a crazy end to the clash when he gave the ball away on the edge of his own area to Youri Tielemans who struck both bar and post with a dazzling effort from the left of Villa's attack.
That wasn't the only nervy moment for the 27-year-old. Just look at the clip below.
While the rest of Arsenal's backline is well-organised, Zinchenko has been dragged wildly out of position. He just doesn't appear to be on the same wavelength as some of his colleagues.
This was a dark old day for Arsenal and once the season is said and done, could be an afternoon they look back on with anguish. This should be the last chance for some players as regular starters, namely the Ukraine international. Takehiro Tomiyasu or Kiwior must be given an opportunity against Bayern on Wednesday.
As bad as Zinchenko: Arsenal's 4/10 star may have cost them the league
Arsenal were downed for the second time this season by Unai Emery’s Aston Villa.
ByMatt DawsonApr 14, 2024