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Cape Town - Arsenal caretaker coach Freddie Ljungberg says he is not thinking about his long-term prospects in the job and is only taking it game by game.
The hunt is on for Unai Emery’s successor after he was sacked on Friday following a run of seven games without a win and a string of performances the club said had not been at the required level.
Ljungberg, Emery’s assistant, has taken over in a caretaker capacity and there is the possibility of him getting the job long-term if he impresses during his interim spell in charge.
Despite such talk, Ljungberg says he is not thinking about what will happen down the line, and remains focused on the job in hand.
It starts with a Premier League encounter with Norwich City at Carrow Road on Sunday afternoon, and Ljunberg is after the three points.
“For me it’s about the team and the club,” he said. “I’m trying to concentrate on the game tomorrow. We’ll try to win that as hard as we can and if there are a few other games, we’ll see. But that’s what I look at, the other stuff is totally irrelevant.”
Ljungberg has revealed no timescale has been set for his spell as Emery’s temporary replacement, and he has also suggested he is in no rush to go straight into management as he continues to learn his trade.
The Swede is delighted to have taken charge of the club he served for nine years as an attacking midfielder, describing it as a ‘great, great honour’.
The Gunners will have plenty of options as they look to appoint a successor to Emery, with former Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri remaining high on the list of targets.
However, who is to say Ljungberg will not come into the reckoning, at least until the end of the season if he can settle the squad and get them picking up results over the next few games.
- TEAMTalk
