Former Chelsea player Craig Burley has said that Mikel Arteta is running out of excuses at Arsenal.
He believes Arsenal are not suffering because they do not have a striker or because anyone is against them, but rather because their new signings are not good enough.
For two seasons now, the Gunners have been widely recognized as strong contenders to win the Premier League.
They also look set to conclude this season in second place once more, sitting 15 points behind leaders Liverpool with 10 games left.
Their last game in the Premier League ended in a 1-1 draw, meaning they have failed to win in their last three league matches.
Speaking about the Gunners’ struggles, Burley said on ESPN FC, “It’s become quite an embarrassment from Arsenal in terms of this title challenge.
“They are now 15 points behind Liverpool. It’s not the referee’s fault, it’s not just because Bukayo Saka is injured, not because Kai Havertz is injured, not because everybody is against them, which was the mindset for a lot of this season.
“How many saves did Onana make in that first half with all that possession for Arsenal? I can’t think of any. You’re not terrific if your end product is lackluster or non-existent.
“If you’re the biggest title challenger to Liverpool and this is the kind of performance you put in against one of the worst teams in the Premier League, which Manchester United are, I’m not having it that this is because they haven’t got a striker.
“Tell me an incident in that game where you sat back and would’ve said, ‘If we had a clinical frontman, we’d have scored that goal.’ There was none. It was overhit crosses, it was bad final balls, it was shots from 20 yards.
“This is not because they don’t have a frontman; this is because their recruitment in the summer wasn’t good enough. The excuses are running out for Arteta.”
