Arsenal were left in decline by Arsene Wenger and things had to change, says Unai Emery

Unai Emery says predecessor Arsene Wenger neglected the Arsenal defence, leaving the club "in decline" when he departed in May.

Wenger was in charge of the Gunners for 22 years from 1996, winning three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups, but failed to lead the club to another league crown following their Invincibles success during the 2003-04 campaign.

And Emery believes Wenger put too much emphasis on the attacking style of his teams during the final 14 years of his reign, a period in which Arsenal failed to win the Premier League crown.

“Before Wenger came, Arsenal celebrated 1-0 and were based on defensive solidity,” Emery told Marca.

“With Arsene, joy came from attacking, with players of good standing. And the perfect combination was the Invincibles [of 2003-04].

“But over time, only technical quality and offensive freedom were taken care of, losing the defensive structure.

“What I want is to unite both essences and be more competitive. Arsenal was in decline. We had to stop it and start climbing.”

And Emery has set about shifting the team's focus in the early months of his spell in the Emirates dugout, uniting the players with the fanbase once more with an undefeated run spanning 16 games and dating back to August.

He added: “I want to make a team that knows how to play with spaces, to be able to counter-attack, or without space, look for how to generate it.

“We are trying to create an idea, a style, be competitive.

“We are coming from an Arsenal that did not win against the top six. Although this year we have not done it yet either, it was also difficult for us to win away from home and we have already improved there.”

Asked if he had sought advice from Wenger after accepting the Arsenal job, Emery said: “I respect him a lot, but no matter how much info he gave me, I had to change things.

“I told the players: ‘We are starting at zero’. Even now, four months later, I still say it: ‘We are in the beginning!’”