Is Prandelli's Status as Galatasaray Manager in Question?

Cesare Prandelli has only been in charge of Galatasaray since July but may already be under pressure to save his job. 

According to Enis Koylu of Goal.com, the former Italian national team manager might be relieved of his duties due to club president Unal Aysal's announcement that he won't run for re-election on October 25. A new era could mean the end of Prandelli's stint in Istanbul.

However, given the side's performances in the Champions League so far, the 57-year-old coach might be sacked due to some sloppy showings.

In the post-match press conference after Wednesday's match, Prandelli tried to ease the pressure by claiming that the new formation is to blame for the heavy defeat:

"

I had to make some decisions and the main thing is that we tried to pick quality in the middle and at the back.

It is my responsibility—it is a new system and the players are trying to do what I asked of them.

Unfortunately tonight it was not enough of a performance.

Arsenal played wider than we thought and Felipe Melo had to play one against one on many occasions. In the second half we changed our system. 

"

Prandelli started with a three-man defense with Melo playing centrally in the back line, but Melo could have been sent off due to an awful challenge on Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez.

The Italian tactician signed a slew of players in the transfer market, most notably Goran Pandev and Blerim Dzemaili from Napoli, who have played in a similar system in the past with the Partenopei.

Salvatore Laporta/Associated Press

Despite those acquisitions, the 3-5-2 hasn't caught on by the looks of Gala's results. Galatasaray currently lie in fifth place in the Turkish Super Lig table, but they're just three points back of league-leaders Akhisar Belediye.

The Istanbul-based club could still claw back some points and make a run for the domestic title, but their situation in the Champions League is grim. Galatasaray is last place in Group D with just one point after two games so far.

That won't please Prandelli given the expectations he had for his team when he was hired.

"Our target is very clear—we want to win the domestic title and progress into the later stages of the UEFA Champions League," said Prandelli in his introductory press conference back in July.

Uncredited/Associated Press/Associated Press

Galatasaray has two crucial matches against Borussia Dortmund in their next couple of fixtures. For the Turkish giants to have any hope of progressing to the round of 16, they'll need to pick up a win in either game.

If the Aslan are still lagging behind the top two teams in their group after the Dortmund matches, Prandelli could be axed.

However, it's still slightly early to judge the former Azzurri boss. It takes time to get used to a new manager, especially with international breaks and travel getting in the way of training and competitive matches.

Regardless, the squad's failure to adjust to Prandelli's system might not keep him safe for very long. If the failures continue in the Champions League, that could cost the Italian his job before a new club president is elected.