Mikel Arteta “is not the right guy” to lead Arsenal to the Premier League title according to former Gunners skipper William Gallas, who let rip at the Spanish boss.
Arteta’s side have finished second to Manchester City in the last two seasons and will once again fall short this term with Liverpool now a whopping 15 points clear at the top of the table.
That’s led to suggestions that Arteta may not be the man to lead Arsenal in that final push and Gallas has had enough.
He told Prime Casino: “My conclusion from what I’ve seen at Arsenal over the last couple of years, and especially after what has happened in the Premier League title race this year, is that Arteta is not the right guy for Arsenal to win the league.
“He had that opportunity to do it. He didn’t do it. The simple truth is that the best managers make the right decisions at the right time. The best managers, the world-class managers, they do whatever it takes to win the Premier League.
“They make difficult decisions. They live with the consequences of upsetting players if they have to, and for me, Arteta didn’t make the right decision at the right time – he should have signed a killer to score the goals that Arsenal – any team – needs to win the Premier League.”
Gallas also took aim at Arteta’s use of Raheem Sterling, who impressed in the Champions League clash with PSV on Wednesday but has barely featured since his summer loan move from Chelsea.
“Arteta brings in players, and puts them on the bench, you never give the guys the chance. Why did you bring the players? Why did you bring Sterling?
“Everybody knew that he didn’t have the quality he had at Liverpool and Manchester City, but when you brought him at the start of the season, you never gave him a chance. Especially when you should have been rotating, you never gave him minutes on the wing.
“Instead, you kept him on the bench, always used the same players, and now they’re tired and Sterling’s confidence has completely evaporated. That’s why I say he’s a good coach, but not top class, not world-class.”
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Gallas also believes Arsenal should be going after Victor Osimhen in the summer, but doubts whether Arteta has the “personality” to deal with such a “big player”.
He added: “I think Victor Osimhen would be the man I would try and sign. He’s been performing well for Galatasaray, obviously on loan from Napoli, and he’s only going to be there for a season.
“He’s a good player. Maybe not the player, but maybe he can score 20 a season. But if he doesn’t, he gives you movement, he gives space for the second forward to exploit and score goals. He takes the focus of defenders, so he could play with Kai Havertz or another striker.
“He will be a little bit more free and then he can score goals for the club. So that’s why a striker like him would be good for Arsenal.
“I was talking about this many years ago. He was too good, I think, to go to Galatasaray. I’m still saying the same thing. I know the club’s fans are going to be on my back again.
“But is he too much of a big player for Arteta? Maybe Mikel Arteta doesn’t have the personality to manage players like Osimhen or to deal with players with personality.
“Big managers like Klopp, Guardiola, Ancelotti, Mourinho and Ferguson. Even Arsene, he had the personality of being our friend, but he knew how to speak to players.
“You have to know how to speak to your players. It doesn’t mean you’re going to have arguments. You have to know how to deal with them, that’s all.”