Arsenal Shocked by BATE in 2019 Europa League 1st-Leg Loss

Arsenal suffered a shock defeat 1-0 away to BATE Borisov in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League last 32 on Thursday night.

Stanislav Dragun headed the winner for the hosts on the stroke of halftime at the Borisov Arena to leave the Gunners under pressure ahead of the second leg at the Emirates Stadium on Thursday, Feb. 21.

Turning around the deficit will be harder with striker Alexandre Lacazette set to face suspension for the return leg. He was sent off five minutes from time following a clash with BATE defender Aleksandar Filipovic.

Negative Unai Emery Has Made Arsenal Worse Than Under Arsene Wenger

Almost nine months on since he took the job, it's hard to argue Unai Emery has improved Arsenal. In fact, it's a lot easier to say the Spaniard has made the Gunners worse than they were during their final season under predecessor Arsene Wenger.

Failing to score against a side Wenger's men put 10 goals past in two group games last season sums up the difference. While the Frenchman had his issues fixing a porous defence, Wenger's teams could at least be counted on for enterprising football, designed to be easy on the eye and prolific fashioning both chances and goals.

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Despite being in charge since May and welcoming six new players to the first team, Emery has failed to stamp an identity on his squad. Formations change from week to week, alternating between a back four and a three-man defence, with no improvement in the number of chances surrendered and goals conceded.

Yet the most damning indictment of Emery is how much of a chore he has made watching Arsenal. The Gunners no longer exchange the quick and intuitive one- and two-touch passes that became a club trademark on Wenger's watch.

Instead, the build-up is sluggish and predictable, with play channeled to raiding left-back Sead Kolasinac over and over again. The reliance keeps Kolasinac busy and productive, but it also makes Arsenal predictable and easy to defend in the final third:

That Arsenal are less entertaining and effective on Emery's watch is hardly a surprise since the Spaniard persists in leaving out the best creative talent in his squad.

Mesut Ozil didn't make the trip to Belarus, and he's started just once since being substituted at halftime of a 1-1 draw away to Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on Dec. 26.

He last played 76 minutes of the 2-1 win over Cardiff City at the Emirates Stadium on January 29.

Ozil is an easy player to criticise, and it's true his languid style doesn't ideally suit the intense pressing game Emery wants. Yet Ozil is still the club's highest earner and the most talented player in the squad, one who can thread a pass through any defence.

An experienced playmaker with Ozil's vision and technique would improve Arsenal's ability to create chances in the areas of the pitch that matter most. It would also help to pair both of the squad's prolific strikers together more often.

Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang can form a partnership capable of scaring any opposition. Separating two proven goalscorers who each cost the club a small fortune makes little to no sense.

Emery waited until seconds shy of the 68th minute before bringing Aubameyang off the bench in Borisov. It was a slow, cagey and too-late response to his team's obvious lack of ideas and cutting edge up top.

Sergei Grits/Associated Press

Those problems are becoming more pronounced each week under a coach who looks increasingly unsure how to get the best from his players in terms of tactics, motivation and intent.

The result is a disjointed squad still outside the top four, the way they were under Wenger last season, out of both domestic cups early doors, and now clinging to the one chance for a prize still left.

Against the backdrop of regular ponderous performances, these struggles mean Emery is taking Arsenal backwards in the post-Wenger era.

What's Next?

Both teams are next in action for the second leg in north London in a week.