The most telling factor wasn’t how Arsenal left Carrow Road, wide-eyed and breathless, clutching onto a point they hardly deserved. It was how they arrived. For the first time in a long time, Arsenal genuinely felt like a club united. In fact, the atmosphere leading into Freddie Ljungberg’s first game in charge was practically celebratory.

Perhaps that was the saddest indictment of Arsenal's current situation. Not that the club is still stretching its worst streak of form since 1992; that it watched on silent and cold-bloodedly as Unai Emery put the final bricks to his own morgue last Thursday, or the satisfaction the squad took from seeing the back of their estranged manager. But that it required such a recipe of turmoil to reach the point where an air of positivity finally returned.

So Arsenal arrived at Norwich, the players chirpier, stepping into the new era they’d spent the last weeks sulking to create. The fans louder, internal debate put to one side, galvanised by a friendly face in their dugout. The ghost of hope transformed into renewed spirit... for 20 minutes at least. Then Teemu Puki turned Arsenal’s housebound defence, waltzed forwards unchallenged and thrashed a shot into the far corner. Snap back into reality then, where the walls are still crumbling down around Shkodran Mustafi’s feet.

During the bitter end to Emery’s tenure, it was easy to magnetise towards the scapegoat. His constant tinkering unsettled, his cautious tactics strangled imagination, and after 18 months his vision remained no more defined than a finger painting. Compounded by an inability to handle power struggles with senior players and the sabotaging factors strolled the training ground like a match and tank of gasoline.

Despite Arsenal’s best intentions to avoid a flimsy transition out of Arsene Wenger’s reign, Emery became the sacrificial lamb for a club struggling to adjust to the present. For now, he will be remembered as the necessary stopgap between eras. In time, his tenure will be reduced to little more than a footnote in history. That was the risk he always knew he was taking.

The favourites to be next Arsenal manager Show all 16 1 /16 The favourites to be next Arsenal manager The favourites to be next Arsenal manager Who are the favourites to become next Arsenal manager?? Here are 15 candidates ranked who could replace former boss Unai Emery at the Emirates. Getty The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 15. Brendan Rodgers (Leicester City) The former Liverpool manager is flying with Leicester and, but a brand-new contract makes any move away now appear very unlikely. Getty Images The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 14. Ralf Rangnick The architect of much of Red Bull's footballing success, Rangnick has been subject to interest from a host of Europe's elite clubs, including Arsenal. With Manchester United also mooted to be interested, it remains to be seen whether he'd consider a move to north London an attractive proposition. Getty The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 13. Julian Nagelsmann (RB Leipzig) The 32-year-old is widely acknowledged as the best young manager in football and someone Arsenal could seek to build a long-term plan around. However, they are far from the only club interested in tempting the German away from Leipzig. Peter Kovalev/TASS The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 12. Nuno Espirito Santo (Wolves) The Wolves manager has had great success leading the side from the Championship to the Europa League. He's still relatively young in managerial terms and could also bring close ties with 'superagent' Jorge Mendes. Getty The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 11. Mauricio Pochettino (Free agent) The Argentine has publicly claimed he wouldn't manage Spurs' north London rivals. He'd also undoubtedly prefer a role at Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or PSG. However, he remains the clear betting favourite to replace Unai Emery and would surely be coveted by the Arsenal hierarchy - no matter how unlikely. The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 10. Marcelino Garcia Toral (Free agent) A free agent after being sacked by Valencia earlier this season Marcelino is considered another possible option from the continent. Getty Images The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 9. Paulo Sousa (Bordeaux) The former Swansea and Leicester manager would be a left-field choice, but has rehabilitated his reputation in France. AFP via Getty Images The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 8. Marcelo Gallardo (River Plate) Linked with Barcelona as the successor to Ernesto Valverde, Arsenal could nip ahead in the race for the Argentine after River Plate's defeat to Flamengo in the Copa Libertadores final. Getty The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 7. Rafael Benitez (Dalian Yifang) Although only recently moving to China after ending his reign at Newcastle, the proposition of taking over at Arsenal would likely be too hard for the Spaniard to refuse. He would bring endless experience to the role, however, his appointment would not be a long-term solution. Getty Images The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 6. Eddie Howe (Bournemouth) The Englishman has been considered by a host of top Premier League teams but usually as a second-choice. Could Arsenal be the ones to throw their weight behind him after such a successful spell at Bournemouth? Getty The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 5. Max Allegri (Free agent) The hugely successful former Juventus manager remains without a club after leaving the Italian champions in the summer after a disappointing Champions League run. He was included in Arsenal's shortlist to replace Arsene Wenger. AFP/Getty Images The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 4. Patrick Vieira (Nice) The former Arsenal captain has always been linked with a return to the club and would surely be interested in the role. The ball is instead with the Gunners' hierarchy to deem whether Vieira is ready after spells in New York and Nice. Getty The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 3. Freddie Ljungberg (Arsenal) If Unai Emery is dismissed, it's believed Ljungberg - his assistant - will at least be given a run of games to see whether he can carry the Gunners until the end of the season. If that spell turns out to be a success, there's no reason why Arsenal wouldn't continue with the well-liked Swede. Getty The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 2. Mikel Arteta (Manchester City assistant) Pep Guardiola's assistant came close to taking the job at Arsenal before Unai Emery's arrival. Whether he would be willing to depart the Premier League champions and a position as Guardiola's successor remains a doubt. However, after studying under the greatest manager in football today, the former Arsenal midfielder's potential is enormous and he's already garnered great respect from senior figures and players at City. PA The favourites to be next Arsenal manager 1. Carlo Ancelotti (Free agent) His sacking at Napoli has seen him become the favourite to take over at Arsenal. He was keen on the Tottenham job and, on a short-term basis, he could be seen as a safe pair of hands to guide Arsenal through a troubled period. AFP via Getty Images

But with those shackles broken, Arsenal were supposed to be set free against Norwich. Instead, the wheels came off too. After an initial burst of intent, Mustafi and Luiz regurgitated their Laurel and Hardy routine, the team began pointing fingers and flailing arms at one another, and only Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's individual brilliance rescued them from another defeat.

Emery’s broken English and awkward "good evening" had always been a cruel point of humour amongst Arsenal’s supporters. An uncomfortable place filler for a lack of natural warmth or familiarity - the symbol of a man who remained firmly an outsider. Yet with Ljungberg in charge, a club legend who could scarcely be closer to Arsenal's heartbeat, there was little to their display which was any more coherent. Ljungberg may only have been interim head coach for 48 hours come kick-off, but his players had the chance to prove something to the public and their former manager. Instead, for much of the second half, they lay down their weapons.

They will of course be short on confidence, perhaps even riddled with self-doubt. The sense of animosity at Arsenal seems to outweigh the vast majority of other clubs. The years of underachievement during Wenger’s decline breeding a toxic culture that’s long outlasted his departure. But then, when the club stumbled, he always had an addictive charm and ideology – that much-vaunted ‘Arsenal DNA’ - which provided a cushion against unmet expectations. At present, it’s uncertain whether that ‘DNA’ still exists. And without it, there’s increasingly little for fans to fall back on. So as the club’s plight is played out against a backdrop of volatility and empty seats, it’s clear there are far more factors which require refitting than simply the manager’s shoes. From a cultural as well as a playing perspective, Arsenal has to show it’s prepared to change.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang rescued Arsenal again (Getty)

First, it will begin in the boardroom. When months of pondering Wenger’s replacement were discarded for the sudden U-turn that saw Emery chosen over Mikel Arteta, the decision was taken in hope of preventing this exact type of tailspin. Now the club has come full-circle, faced by an identical dilemma, choosing between a ‘safer’ candidate and one who might better inspire. That choice will obviously be pivotal and, as things stand, it’s hard to envisage Ljungberg offering the club a Solskjaer-esque get-out clause.

Ultimately, though, it’s the dressing room which is most in need of an overhaul. Arsenal’s players were willingly complicit in Emery’s downfall and barely bothered to make secret of it. Ozil waged a full-scale PR campaign, senior players repeatedly liked social media posts calling for his sacking, and there was little attempt to shield jokes made at the manager’s expense even from those in the youth teams. Now Emery’s gone, those same players who took his legs must stand tall on their own.