"I wish Arsenal just took Conte" - Jay Bothroyd explains why he would have preferred Tottenham boss over Mikel Arteta after North London derby

Arsenal academy product and former QPR striker Bothroyd believes the Gunners should have appointed Antonio Conte when they had the chance. He added that the Italian would have been better for them than Mikel Arteta, and they would have already sealed their top four spot.

Arteta's side lost 3-0 to Tottenham last night after Cedric's foul handed Spurs a penalty, and Rob Holding got himself sent off. The Gunners are now just a point ahead of their derby rivals and four points behind third placed Chelsea.

“This will really hurt the squad!” 😳

❌ “This will break the morale. There was no belief in that performance, tonight.”

Jay Bothroyd says #AFC won’t finish in the top 4, after tonight’s defeat to #THFC. 👀 https://t.co/4tp9NLoJ4L

Bothroyd was talking on Kick Off when he claimed the North London side made a mistake by not going for Conte when they had the chance. He believes the Gunners should have sacked Arteta and signed the Italian before Tottenham. He said:

"These are the kinds of game where I question Arteta's leadership qualities. This is what makes me question whether he's the right man for the job. I don't see leadership qualities at all. No one is out there talking, no one is bossing people around. It's poor, it's mentally weak, and that stems from Arteta."

He added:

"Unfortunately, these are the kind of games where I question him. You can play against teams like Brighton and Burnley, where Arsenal win games and you say, 'Oh, he's great', and so on. I don't think this would happen with Conte. This is why I was I was saying I wish Arsenal just took Conte before Tottenham did, because they would have, arguably, one of the best managers in the world."

Will Arsenal miss out on Top 4 this season?

Arsenal are still in the driver's seat to finish fourth in the Premier League this season as they have one point more than Tottenham in the league table. If the Gunners win their last two games, it would automatically seal their position in next year's Champions League.

However, Bothroyd believes they might crumble under pressure.

Mikel Arteta reflects on a frustrating night in north London 👇

#TOTARS

The former footballer added that the morale is down and there was no belief in the performance last night.

He said:

"I can't see that happening now. This will really hurt the squad and this will really break the morale. We don't have characters in our squad, you can see that today. No one stepped up and said, 'Let's get together, we can still do this. There was no belief in that performance tonight."

Arsenal face Newcastle United and Everton in their final two matches of the season, while Tottenham battle Burnley and the already relegated Norwich City.