Arsenal’s best piece of business this summer has been the appointment of head coach Unai Emery, according to former midfielder Robert Pires. Last week, Uruguay international Lucas Torreira and 19-year-old Matteo Guendouzi became Arsena’s fourth and fifth signings of the summer. The midfielders follow defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos, free agent Stephan Lichtsteiner and goalkeeper Bernd Leno in the door at the Emirates.
However, Pires thinks bringing in former Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain boss Emery has been their greatest purchase to date. “The best signing for me is Unai Emery, the manager. Of course I believe in the players, and especially the new players. “But for Emery it’s very important to start very well. He knows he’s at a big club, and has a lot of pressure, but I think he has a big character and spirit.
“He won in Spain. He won in France. He has a lot of experience and I hope for him and Arsenal that he is successful with the club.” Pires spent six years under Arsene Wenger at Arsenal from 2000 to 2006, winning both the Premier League and FA Cup on two occasions. The former France international spoke of his admiration for the former Arsenal boss, who admitted staying at the club for 22 years was “perhaps” the biggest mistake of his managerial career.