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Arsenal turn to Freddie Ljungberg as under-fire Unai Emery faces sack

Unai Emery

Emery is facing intense pressure after watching his side throw away the lead to lose 2-1 at home to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League on Thursday.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang put the Gunners in front in the first half before the Bundesliga side mounted a comeback after the break in front of a small and unhappy crowd at the Emirates.

Arsenal were booed off the pitch by their own supporters at full-time and many fans held up “Emery Out” banners throughout the game.

The Times reports that Emery is now on the brink of being sacked after failing to oversee a victory in the last seven matches, the club’s worst run of form in 27 years.

Former PSG and Sevilla manager Emery has a contract until 2021 at the Emirates worth £6 million a year, which includes a break clause for next summer.

It seems unlikely he will make it that far after a period of dismal form that has seen Arsenal eliminated from the Carabao Cup and drop to eighth place in the Premier League, eight points off the Champions League places.

The report adds that while the official attendance for Thursday’s meeting with Frankfurt was 49,919, that was based on season ticket sales and the actual turnout was closer to 25,000.

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Alasdair Mackenzie is a freelance journalist based in Rome, and a FourFourTwo contributor since 2015. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. An Italophile since growing up on a diet of Football Italia on Channel 4, he now counts himself among thousands of fans sharing a passion for Ross County and Lazio.