Arsenal’s first season in over 2 decades without Wenger in charge didn’t bring much improvement, and the decline from recent years continued. The Gunners remained extremely poor travellers, with lots of defeats suffered on the road throughout the campaign.
New coach Emery also struggled to accommodate both Lacazette and Aubameyang on the pitch at the same time, plus he failed to inspire Ozil to improve his decaying form.
Also nothing got better defensively, with Arsenal continuing to concede lots of cheap goals due to individual errors.
With average results against their main rivals in the ‘Big Six’ (3 wins, 3 draws and 4 defeats), plus early exits from the 2 domestic cup competitions after losses to Tottenham and Man United, the pressure was on to secure a top 4 finish.
Unfortunately 4 defeats in 5 during April saw the team collapsing from third to fifth, and this serious dip in form was the main reason why a Champions League visa was missed.
Arsenal had one final chance to secure it after luck helped them to reach the Europa League final, but the trophy-match was an embarrassment with 1:4 defeat vs. Chelsea, leaving fans and players in a serious psychological hole.
Emery must strengthen the defence this summer if Arsenal are to do better next season. Also finding a way to spark Ozil back to life might be the only way forward, as on a good day the German can be crucial, the problem being that his good days were very few in the last 3 years.
