Phil Thompson has given his verdict on the ongoing situation at Arsenal under Mikel Arteta, suggesting he might have lost control of the dressing room.
Arsenal’s season has begun in the worst possible manner. Three Premier League games later, the club are winless, pointless and goalless. Moreover, the nine goals conceded so far places them at rock bottom of the table. The club are in an indifferent position right now and need a quick turnaround if they are hoping to get anything out of the season and ease the pressure mounting on the manager.
While the circumstances surrounding the opening three games are definitely questionable, the big problem has been the team’s lack of intent on the pitch. Injuries, covid-related absentees, etc., have all come into play for Arsenal as they missed key players for all these games.
Meanwhile, Arsenal spent record sums on transfers, outspending a number of their Premier League rivals in the summer. The transfers are suggestions that Arteta still holds plenty of support from the board and owners. The problems facing the manager could be from within the squad, as Liverpool legend and pundit Phil Thompson believes, ‘he has lost control’.
Thompson was speaking to Paddy Power over many things related to Arsenal and The Metro published some of the following quotes from him. Thompson said, “There’s something not right at Arsenal. I feel as though Mikel Arteta has lost the dressing room.”
“The results are not going great for him, and no one knows what the plan is. I feel as though some of the big players at that football club are pulling in another direction and I don’t think that helps anybody.”
Without criticising Arteta further, Thompson somewhat gave an assessment of the situation and what the manager should do going forward.
“Arteta has got to be strong. He’s a good coach, but he’s got to be firm with these senior players not pulling their weight. Results like the Manchester City game are not forgotten easily. Every team can go up to Manchester City and get beaten, but it’s the way they did so. I would think he has until Christmas to turn results around.
“Arsenal have been one of the great institutions of the Premier League era, particularly when you look at Wenger and what he managed to achieve. They are a long way away from that now,” he further added.
