da heads bet： This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…
da pixbet： According to The Telegraph, Napoli boss Carlo Ancelotti is among a number of candidates to take over as Arsenal manager.
What’s the word?
The Gunners’ miserable start to the current campaign has proven to be too much for the club’s hierarchy to overlook, with the north London side already eight points off the top four, and still not qualified for the Europa League knockout stages.
And following their 2-1 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt on Thursday evening, Arsenal took the decision to sack Emery, with Freddie Ljungberg named as interim head coach. However, The Telegraph claim former Chelsea manager Ancelotti is amongst a host of names who are currently being lined up by the Gunners as those who could potentially take on the role of boss on a more long-term, and permanent basis.
Temptation
When a manager has won the Champions League on three separate occasions (twice with Milan and once with Real Madrid), you would be foolish to simply write off his chances as becoming your new boss. But whilst Ancelotti’s CV is more impressive than most in world football, he wouldn’t represent the sense of progress that the Gunners desperately need.
Arsenal have already tried their luck with appointing a manager with European pedigree in Unai Emery, the Spaniard having won three successive Europa League titles with Sevilla. They should look at rivals Chelsea and their appointment of club legend Frank Lampard, and the success the Blues have had (in the top four and within reach of the Champions League last 16 too).
His age, his connection to the club, and indeed even his relative inexperience, instantly made things far more exciting in west London. It felt like the Blues were keen on moving forward with the times, rather than trying to cling on the past. Ancelotti’s Napoli find themselves in seventh in Serie A, and already fifteen points off Juventus in first. The Gunners must avoid the temptation of appointing the Italian, and be brave with their next appointment.
Meanwhile, Arsenal fans have reacted to the appointment of Freddie Ljungberg as interim head coach.