The simple answer is that Arsenal have been a team without a recognised striker for some time, something Arteta has declined to address
Mikel Arteta is a manager with a reputation for meticulously exploiting the finest margins – but now Arsenal’s season threatens to flounder because he left the most vital commodity of all to chance.
Arsenal’s FA Cup third-round exit to Manchester United on penalties was the painful sequel to Tuesday’s damaging 2-0 home defeat by Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg.
So many of Arsenal’s problems, and why they trail Premier League pacesetters Liverpool by six points having played a game more, result from Arteta and the club’s transfer strategy.
Arteta’s acquisitions have reduced the Gunners to a blunt instrument when a lack of cutting edge was their biggest, most obvious weakness.
There are a variety of responses, cynical or otherwise, that could be given to Arteta’s claim that “from 1,000 games like this you should lose one. Unfortunately it was this one. You [Arsenal] deserve to win the game by a mile but the reality is we are out and that is the only thing that’s going to be judged”.
The simple answer is that Arsenal have been a team without a recognised striker for some time, something Arteta has declined to address, choosing instead to strengthen other areas rather than their most pressing, obvious need.
And now, as they go out of the FA Cup at the first hurdle, face an uphill fight to reach Wembley in the Carabao Cup and struggle to keep up with Liverpool in the title race, Arteta and Arsenal’s failure to sign a goalscorer has been exposed.
Study the statistics from those past two defeats and the problem is writ large. In capital letters.
They had 23 shots with only three on target against Newcastle, and 26 with seven on target against Manchester United in 120 minutes. Of those 26, 22 came from inside the box – Arsenal having 55 touches in Manchester United’s penalty area.
For all that, the only goal, in both of these games, came from defender Gabriel’s deflected shot.
To underscore Arsenal’s lack of potency, this came against a Manchester United team who played the last 29 minutes of normal time plus 30 minutes of extra time with only ten men after defender Diogo Dalot was sent off for receiving a second yellow card.
bbc.com