Football news - Arsenal players 'lose faith in Unai Emery', while Pires admits club in 'big trouble'

Saturday's 2-2 draw against relegation-threatened Southampton leaves the Gunners six matches without a win, and eighth in the Premier League.

And The Telegraph reports that players are confused by the Spaniard's selections, tactics and instructions, and that there is a growing sentiment inside the squad that Emery should be sacked to get Arsenal back on track.

A source told Telegraph Sport: “The problem is the coach. He still makes bad decisions and changes his tactics.

“There is no identity to the team and the players do not see any progress.

“The recent performances and results have had a big impact on the belief of the squad.

“Does anybody still think they can qualify for the Champions League under the coach? I don’t think so.”

Tottenham Hotspur’s recent appointment of Jose Mourinho has also sparked a reaction at the Emirates Stadium.

“Mourinho taking over at Tottenham has only made it worse,” a source said.

“He may not be to everyone’s liking, but he is a winner and Spurs have made it clear they want to win.

“Unai Emery is not seen as a coach on the same level as Guardiola, Klopp or even Mourinho."

However, while Arsenal legend Robert Pires also believes the club are in 'big trouble' under Emery, he backed the boss to turn around the club's fortunes.

"Everybody knows at Arsenal, even Unai Emery, that they are in big trouble,’ Pires told Omnisport. "But [Emery] is a competitor, he knows the high level. He was a great manager with Sevilla, with Paris Saint-Germain, but the situation is not so good. ‘He is a good manager, I think he will make a success with Arsenal. I hope for him anyway."

In the event that Emery is sacked, the most likely reaction is for assistant first-team coach Freddie Ljungberg to become interim boss until the summer.

Other possible candidates include Brendan Rodgers, Mikel Arteta and Julian Nagelsmann, but would need a lot of convincing if Arsenal look too far adrift of Champions League spot.