Arsenal failed to beat Liverpool to midfielder Fabinho.
Arsenal boss Unai Emery has told The Mirror that a move for Fabinho was ‘on the table’ but Liverpool swooped in and signed him first.
The Gunners are back in Europa League action this evening, facing Portuguese side Vitoria de Guimaraes in a game Emery really needs to win.
There is growing discontent in the Arsenal fanbase about Emery’s record, particularly after another away failing on Monday night with a 1-0 defeat at Sheffield United.
Arsenal haven’t really improved under Emery, despite backing him with signings like Kieran Tierney, David Luiz, Dani Ceballos and, most notably, Nicolas Pepe.
Pepe was actually Arsenal’s brightest player against Sheffield United, but he’s yet to score from open play for the Gunners, with the Ivorian struggling to repay his price tag.
Emery has now pointed to Liverpool’s Fabinho as proof that a player can often take a while to fully settle into Premier League life, with the Brazilian a particularly important comparison given that both he and Pepe came over from Ligue 1.
Fabinho barely featured in his early months at Anfield, but is now virtually ever-present for Klopp, and Emery wants the same patience with Pepe and Dani Ceballos too.
Emery even admitted that he wanted to sign Fabinho from Monaco, but just five days after Emery took the Arsenal job in May 2018, Liverpool completed their £43million (BBC), £100,000-a-week (Spotrac) deal for the holding midfielder.
“I love Fabinho,” said Emery. “His name was on the table, but he signed for Liverpool. The first six months he didn’t play, he was adapting – but now he is amazing. I want the same patience with Dani Ceballos, with Nicolas Pepe,” he added.
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