Ian Wright sees the Premier League title “falling away” from his beloved Arsenal after “not seeing anything” from Mikel Arteta’s side in recent weeks.
Arsenal saw out a goalless draw with Sporting at the Emirates on Wednesday to confirm their place in the Champions League semi-finals, where they will meet Atletico Madrid, after Kai Havertz’s late goal in the first leg secured a 1-0 aggregate win.
It was the latest unconvincing performance from Arteta’s side in a long list of them on the back of Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City, the FA Cup exit at the hands of Southampton and the Premier League loss to Bournemouth on Saturday.
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Thierry Henry has laughed at their chances in the crunch clash with Manchester City on Sunday and Joe Cole has urged Arteta to drop a player who “fluffed his lines” against Sporting for what many believe will be the title decider.
And Wright says watching Arsenal is “killing me” and is struggling to find positives to cling to in the title run-in.
Wright said on The Overlap: “Watching the games, it hurts. There’s a pain that’s hurting me. It’s killing me that I can’t feel it. I’ve put so much, invested so much into the manager, the team, the players, everything.
“And they’ve got to a place again and you are just seeing it falling away, you’re seeing players making mistakes.”
Suggesting Wright may be overreacting, Keane said: “It’s not falling away yet. They’re top of the table. They’re nervous, they look edgy, but they have to get through that.
“Did you think it was going to be plain sailing? They’ve been nervous for six months?”
Wright replied: “I didn’t expect it to be plain sailing Roy, because it’s never plain sailing. Even the team that has momentum still has to get it done.
“But when you are at the top of the league and you have to beat teams, I’m not seeing anything.
“You’re watching the boys, you’re watching the way we play, which honestly I don’t like but I’m just taking it to get over the line.
“We’re in a position that we’ve been in three times before. Why should I say to people that come up to me ‘Don’t worry, have faith’?
“We haven’t played any kind of football to beat a team in a way where (I can say that). We can’t get through the nervousness.”
Neville then asks Wright is he had a a message to the Arsenal players after winning the Premier League title with the Gunners in the 1997/98 season.
Wright added: “I believe that how we’re playing now, and however the manager wants you to play, once you get on the pitch, you have to take a certain responsibility for yourself because it’s failing right now.”