Arsenal Chief Ivan Gazidis Outlines the Reasons Why Unai Emery Was Appointed New Gunners Manager

​Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis has moved to explain why Unai Emery has been appointed the club's new manager, despite Mikel Arteta looking nailed on for the gig at one point.

The Spaniard was officially confirmed as the north London giants' new boss on Wednesday morning, when only a few days before he was on the periphery along with a host of other potential candidates.

Former Gunners midfielder Mikel Arteta was expected to get the job, but the Manchester City number two ruled himself out of the running following reported disagreements over transfer policy.

Despite seeming like a rushed appointment, Gazidis assured fans a thorough hiring process was undertaken, and that the 46-year-old emerged as highly desirable for a number of reasons.

He said in a club statement: "Unai has an outstanding track record of success throughout his career, has developed some of the best young talents in Europe and plays an exciting, progressive style of football that fits Arsenal perfectly."

"His hard-working and passionate approach and his sense of values on and off the pitch make him the ideal person to take us forward.

"We conducted a confidential, wide-ranging and rigorous search involving extensive background references, data and video analysis, and personal meetings with all the candidates we shortlisted."

Emery impressively conducted his first press conference in English on Wednesday, and he will now work towards getting Arsenal 'back among Europe's elite'.

The Gunners will participate in next season's Europa League after their sixth place finish, and fans will be excited to see how Emery fares given his past successes in the competition.