"How many of them has he made significantly better?" - Former Premier League star takes aim at Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta
Former Nottingham Forest and Liverpool striker Stan Collymore has hit out at Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta. This comes amidst struggles for the Spanish tactician, who has recently found it difficult to take the Gunners to the heights of the last two seasons.
Mikel Arteta's men are struggling to stay in the title race. They are currently in fourth place with 19 points, nine points behind league leaders Liverpool. This has raised concerns around their form, with pundits like Collymore questioning Arteta's leadership and suitability for the managerial role in north London.
Collymore said on his CaughtOffside column (via Football365):
“I immediately thought Mikel Arteta was full of waffle and modern coaching tricks when he was handed the manager’s job at Arsenal... How many players has Arteta actually brought in that were seen to be title-winning level players, and how many of them has he made significantly better? Ben White? Kai Havertz? Thomas Partey? Declan Rice?
“What about Martin Odegaard? He was the guy at age 15 at Real Madrid that was meant to go on and be a world beater anyway, so surely he would have got to this point of maturity whereby he has an impact on somebody’s first team."
Collymore continued:
“The classic question is how many players in the Arsenal squad has Mikel Arteta turned from average to good, good to very good, very good to great? And if you compare that with Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola, Unai Emery and others, he doesn’t come across very well at all.
“Forget results, because results come as a consequence of you making those players better. It’s not about whether he’s a nice guy, it’s not whether he’s fresh and young or he’s from the Pep Guardiola Barcelona school of coaching… How many players has Arteta actually made significantly better and, Arsenal fans, I want you to answer that honestly.”
With the ongoing international break, the Gunners will have some time to review their start to the season and generate ideas on how they can improve their form.
Arsenal need to return to the drawing board amid new struggles under Arteta
Arteta has been cardinal to the Gunners' growth, emerging after Arsene Wenger left the club at the end of the 2017-18 season. He took over the role in December 2019, replacing Unai Emery and leading the Gunners to year-on-year growth.
This has culminated in a return to UEFA Champions League football, while the Gunners have finished in second place in the Premier League twice in a row. Despite this improvement, their form seems to have tapered this season.
In their last seven games, Arsenal have won just twice, with those two wins coming in the Champions League against Shakhtar and in the EFL Cup against Preston North End. Draws against Liverpool and Chelsea have not helped matters, while losses to Bournemouth, Newcastle and Inter have only raised fears.
The Gunners will need to return to the drawing board in the coming weeks if they are to return to the impressive form they enjoyed last season.