Jose Mourinho would be the ideal man to manage Arsenal instead of Unai Emery, according to talkSPORT host Adrian Durham.
The Gunners blew a two goal lead to draw 2-2 with Watford on Sunday afternoon, conceding both goals through defensively calamitous incidents.
And Durham believes that patience is beginning to wear thin with Emery.
Speaking on talkSPORT, he said: “I sense there is now a shift amongst the Arsenal fans where they liked him first of all, knew it was difficult.
“But they’re looking at him now and they’re very skeptical as to whether he is really the man to solve all the problems.
“You know who they need? They need Jose Mourinho. He will be perfect.
“Their fans will hate me for saying it.”
“Fans are looking at Emery now & they’re very skeptical.” ?
“They need Mourinho. Fans won’t like it, it’s exactly who they need.” ?@talkSPORTDrive thinks Arsenal should bring Jose Mourinho in…#AFC fans, Do you agree? ? pic.twitter.com/czI7Y7f2F1
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) September 16, 2019
Is Durham right?
You can see the point he is trying to make here, but the truth is that he is wide of the mark by quite some distance.
Arsenal are defensively frail, that much is blatantly evident, and Mourinho has built a reputation as one of the most conservative and well-organised managers in the upper echelons of the modern game.
Over the course of his 820 matches as a boss, Mourinho has conceded just 708 goals, compared to the 1,631 he has seen his sides score, as per Transfermarkt.
By comparison, Emery has conceded 782 in just 672 games, as per Transfermarkt.
And that fragility at the back was really hammered home last season when Arsenal conceded 54 goals in the league, more than any other side in the top half, except for Manchester United and West Ham, with the Hammers finishing 10th.
And that hints at one of two issues with Durham’s claim.
Firstly, Mourinho’s reputation may be one of solidity, but that has been largely challenged in recent times.
During his time at United, for instance, he conceded 129 goals in 144 matches, and his inability to find a settled backline, despite spending big on players like Eric Bailly and Victor Lindelof, always felt like a large part of the reason that he eventually left Old Trafford.
Perhaps more pertinent, however, is the fact that Mourinho never seems to stay too long.
His average term as a manager is 1.96 years, as per Transfermarkt, but it is clear that this Gunners side is a long term project that needs patience and a manager willing to weather some pretty rough storms.
Mourinho is more accustomed to instant success and then a pretty gradual decline around the beginning of the third season.
He wouldn’t be the right man for Arsenal.