Wheels are coming off at Arsenal and hapless boss Emery has no idea how to stop the rot

THE wheels are coming off for Unai Emery and the bewildered Spaniard has no idea how to stop the rot.

Arsenal’s hapless boss could hardly believe his eyes as his side folded like a house of cards to surrender a two-goal lead.

Josh Kroenke — son of Gunners owner Stan — had travelled over from America to assess the situation and would have been shocked by the toxic atmosphere brewing at the Emirates.

The febrile hostility is even worse than in the last days of Arsene Wenger as Emery has failed to impose his ideas and his discipline on the players.

Arguably the loudest insults were reserved for referee Martin Atkinson at the final whistle following two contentious VAR decisions which turned this game on its head.

But Arsenal captain Granit Xhaka also left the pitch to a hail of abuse when he was subbed off in the 61st minute and reacted furiously as he made his way down the tunnel.

Arsenal collapsing under pressure and conceding soft goals is not new.

But having your skipper tell his detractors to ‘f*** off’ before tearing off his shirt is a new low — even for a club with a long history of making a drama out of a crisis.

And Emery knows that if he does not get a grip on the growing dissent then he will be lucky to make it to the end of the season.

The fans have already delivered their verdict on their struggling manager, chanting for the absent Mesut Ozil after seeing their team chuck away another two points.

It could have been even worse deep into stoppage time but for Matteo Guendouzi’s desperate rugby challenge to deny Wilfried Zaha the chance of a last-gasp Palace winner.

Arsenal, flakier than a leper in a hot tub, had already lost the plot by then.

They had stormed into a two-goal lead within the first nine minutes when first Sokratis and then David Luiz bundled in Nicolas Pepe corners.

But the moment Calum Chambers stuck out a leg to send Zaha sprawling in the box, you could sense the sheer panic engulfing the Emirates.

Atkinson’s immediate reaction to Chambers’ 29th-minute challenge was to book Zaha for simulation and give Arsenal a free-kick.

But he was persuaded by the voice of VAR official Jarred Gillett in his ear that the Eagles winger had been fouled and rescinded his original decision.

Bernd Leno has never saved a penalty for Arsenal and Luka Milivojevic has hardly ever missed one for Palace.

So it was hardly a shock when the German keeper was sent the wrong way from the spot.

Suddenly Zaha had the bit between his teeth and Arsenal were absolutely petrified every time the ball crossed the halfway line.

Emery had feared Palace’s talisman would have a point to prove after Arsenal’s £40million bid for him was rejected out of hand by Palace during the summer.

And it was not just Chambers struggling to keep a lid on things. Sokratis and Luiz were flying into desperate last-ditch tackles and Guendouzi was racing around like a headless chicken.

And when all around him were losing their heads, midfield anchorman Xhaka once again capped another day of chaos when he failed to halt James McArthur’s surge to set up Jordan Ayew’s 52nd-minute equaliser.

It is hard to see how Xhaka can continue as Arsenal captain when the entire stadium appears to have turned against him.

And his furious reaction to their abuse suggests that he has also reached breaking point. Emery said he will deal with Captain Calamity when things have cooled down a bit — but when Ozil is one of your armband alternatives it is not going to be a straightforward solution.

But it is the lack of leadership from the technical area which is really hurting an Arsenal team who are already 12 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool and four adrift of the top four.

They thought they had snatched a dramatic winner right at the death when another Pepe corner caused mayhem in a Palace defence which had not conceded a single set-piece goal this season prior to pitching up in North London.

Alexandre Lacazette’s 83rd-minute flick was hacked clear by Christian Benteke straight to the lurking Sokratis, who hammered the loose ball through a crowd of defenders and past keeper Wayne Hennessey.

But the Greek defender’s joy quickly turned to outrage when Atkinson took the ball off the centre-spot, having awarded the goal, and marched it all the way back to the Palace six-yard box for a free-kick.

Aussie VAR official Gillett, who has never refereed a Premier League match in his life, ruled that Chambers had fouled Milivojevic in the scramble which had preceded Sokratis’ strike.

And Eagles boss Roy Hodgson certainly was not going to disagree with the rulings.

He said: “Referees make decisions on the spur of the moment and this was a situation where VAR really showed its merits.

“Martin Atkinson is one of the best refs in the world and I am certain that he will be comfortable with the correct decision being made.”

Ex-England chief Hodgson added: “If I’m going to be really picky, there was a clear push on James McArthur for Arsenal’s second goal.

“And I could also complain that the ref was relatively kind to allow Guendouzi to stay on the field for that rugby tackle.”