From the Kroenkes to the technical director, from Arteta to his squad, nobody is standing out as a high performer
Eleven hours and very possibly a sleepless night after the worst moment of his managerial career, Mikel Arteta was asked to rake back over the debris. Arsenal have been condemned to a year in the shadows and he was left to discuss why things have gone so badly wrong after, in his words, “investing every drop of energy emotionally” in a project whose credibility is teetering on the edge. “So far it has not been enough and this is when the question mark comes: why is it not enough?” Arteta said. “Is it just a thing? Is it the manager? Is it other stuff? What is it?”
Anybody capable of boiling that down to a single factor could probably earn themselves a pretty enough penny to help Daniel Ek force his bid to unseat the Kroenkes over the line. The problem is that, while fingers will flail everywhere in search of an answer to Arsenal’s decline, it is nigh on impossible to settle on a panacea. Arteta has by all measures that matter failed this season, but anyone believing their fortunes can be reversed by trading one piece of the puzzle would overlook the doubts coursing from top to bottom.
Related: Mikel Arteta ‘devastated’ as Arsenal fall in Europa League semi-final
Only Tierney, Smith Rowe, Saka and presumably Partey can feel especially secure over the coming months
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