Jamie Carragher told CBS Sports on Paramount+ (26/05/21 at 11:00 pm) that one-time Arsenal boss, Unai Emery, has become the ‘great manager of all time’ in the Europa League.
The 49-year-old, who was sacked by Arsenal in 2019, lifted his fourth Europa League trophy on Wednesday night when his Villarreal team beat Manchester United on penalties.
The last time Emery competed in a European final, his team were well beaten by Chelsea, but this time around, it was a different story, in what was a pretty nervy end to a tense final.
Carragher thinks both Emery and Villarreal have ‘done something amazing’, as he hailed the Spanish coach for being ‘very clever’ from a tactical standpoint.
“That is what the great coaches do,” said Carragher. “They give players the belief they can achieve things they haven’t achieved before, and he is the greatest manager of all time in this competition.
“This success, for me, is about the manager, it really is. The difference in quality between the two teams is so obvious in the game and I just think the work of the manager and the substitutions I thought were very clever.
“For Unai Emery to win with that team, their actual quality to keep the ball, threaten Manchester United was really average, let’s be honest. Villarreal have done something amazing. But this is an average team, who shouldn’t be competing with Manchester United.
“Tonight shows you, never forget, the most important person at a football club is the manager. Tonight, he (Solskjær) lost the game. Unai Emery made five subs in normal time. Ole hadn’t made one by then. There was a plan and he realised he didn’t have as good of a team.”
This is Emery’s moment where he has shown to the world that he still is a quality coach despite being highly criticised during his time at Arsenal.
Whilst Emery now prepares for the Champions League next season, those in North London, under the guidance of the man who replaced Emery, are now preparing for no European football at all.
Bigger problems, other than previously Emery and now Mikel Arteta, lie at the club, but one thing is for sure, Arsenal have, once again, gone backwards since he left.
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