Unai Emery will learn exactly what the Arsenal fans think of him tonight

In the modern era, it is difficult to gauge exactly how a fan base feels about a manager.

Social media means you can easily get swamped with extreme opinions, which can often differ from those fans who go week in, week out.

Tonight at the Emirates, however, the Arsenal hierarchy are going to get a clear ­indication of exactly how the core support feel about Unai Emery.

The Spaniard is under ­pressure to save his job and he is ­looking for a ­victory tonight against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League after a run of six games without a win.

The feeling around Arsenal is Emery may ­already have lost the support of fans and tonight will show whether that is the case because the stadium will exclusively contain hardcore Gunners.

Frankfurt supporters are banned from attending after crowd disturbances during their match against Vitoria ­Guimaraes last month.

Prior to the UEFA ­ruling, around 5,000 Frankfurt fans were expected to make the trip and, through fear of them still making the journey, Arsenal have made tickets very hard to get hold of.

They are not on sale to Red Adult and Cannon Red ­Members, while the Friends & Family and ticket exchange service is not in operation for tonight’s game. In addition, the club will cancel the memberships of anyone who has sold tickets to away supporters.

What it all means is that the ­Emirates should contain only season ticket ­holders and premium ­membership owners. There should be no away fans, no tourists or ­occasional visitors, just the core element of Arsenal fans.

The decision to make tickets so hard to come by was taken following ­discussions with the police and local authorities and it has now presented the Arsenal hierarchy with a rare social experiment.

With no away fans to drown out the noise, no first-time fans getting swept away by the emotion of their debut visit, club chiefs can truly hear what season ticket holders think about Emery.

Arsenal FC via Getty Images

The Spaniard insisted yesterday he retains the backing of “everyone” at Arsenal, however one senses that support is fading with every poor result.

Standard Sport reported earlier this month how the plan was to give Emery the six games after the most recent international break — starting with Southampton last weekend — to correct the slide but he may now not get that long.

Tonight’s clash with ­Frankfurt looks like an ideal game to stop the rot. Arsenal beat them 3-0 in Germany earlier this season, while Frankfurt have lost their last three games in a row.

Their 5-1 victory over Bayern Munich earlier this month, however, shows how Frankfurt can still pose a threat and one suspects they will fancy their chances against an Arsenal side who look fragile in confidence.

In Pictures | Arsenal vs Southampton | 23/11/2019

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Emery, too, looked like a man low on confidence yesterday as he was repeatedly quizzed about his future and the fact that another manager, Nuno Espirito Santo of Wolves, has been linked with replacing him.

The questions were knocked away as Emery instead insisted he is focused on connecting with the supporters but the fear is that their minds are already made up. The 48-year-old, however, feels they can be won over and he has the same belief when it comes to the fans’ view of Granit Xhaka.

Action Images via Reuters

The midfielder has not played since October 27, when he clashed with supporters during the draw with Crystal Palace, but he could return tonight.

“He’s in the group and has the ­possibility to play,” said Emery, who could be without full-backs Hector ​Bellerin and Sead Kolasinac as they recover from hamstring injuries.

REUTERS

“I hope every supporter supports the team. Xhaka’s comeback is going to be important to us. They are angry and they are now disappointed but we are as well. We have a very big opportunity to change that and this is my wish.”

Tonight we will find out whether or not Emery is granted his wish or if it is too little, too late.

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