Jamie Carragher blasts one Mikel Arteta signing that means Arsenal ‘cannot win the title’

Joe Williams
Jamie Carragher on Arsenal
Jamie Carragher thinks Mikel Arteta made a mistake in the transfer market.

Arsenal “cannot win the title” this season after Mikel Arteta prioritised signing Mikel Merino over a striker in the summer, according to Jamie Carragher.

The Gunners have not had the season many supporters were expecting after the north London club invested in Euro 2024 stars Merino and Riccardo Calafiori.

As well as the Spain and Italy stars, Arsenal made David Raya’s loan deal from Brentford permanent and brought in Raheem Sterling and Neto in loan deals.

Despite the negativity around the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal are second in the Premier League and four points adrift of leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand.

Arsenal have suffered injuries at crucial times in the season and their latest setback came on Sunday when Gabriel Jesus was taken off in their defeat to Manchester United in the FA Cup.

Jesus is out for the season and there is now speculation that Arsenal will attempt to sign a new striker before the January transfer window closes, something that Liverpool legend Carragher thinks they should have done in the summer.

Carragher wrote in his Daily Telegraph column: “It is obvious where the frustration will be directed if they fall off the pace. Long-standing and justified concerns about a lack of firepower have not been addressed.

“Prioritising signing midfielder Mikel Merino ahead of another attacker last summer looks like a mistake. Merino is not a game-changer.

“Everything we have seen in the first half of this campaign has reinforced arguments made in pre-season.

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“I wrote a few months ago that Chelsea cannot win the title without signing a goalkeeper and centre-back. Their recent performances have exposed where they are short.

“Arsenal cannot win the title without another attacker. That was true before Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Jesus’s injuries.

“If they do not react before the end of this month it will be negligent because persisting with a strikeforce of Kai Havertz, Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli will not get the job done.”

Merino picked up a shoulder injury during his first Arsenal training session and it’s been a difficult start to life at Arsenal with the Spaniard struggling to nail down a place in Arteta’s starting XI.

But Merino is sure he will justify Arsenal’s investment soon, he said recently: “I might be big and strong, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have other qualities.

“Obviously, I’m not a David Silva style of player. But the pass-first mentality, keeping the ball, and not feeling the pressure when you have a player on your back. Those are things that I have in my game.

“I’m not going to be the player who moves in the pocket like David Silva did or like (Andres) Iniesta did. I’m a different kind of player. But I also have the same mentality as they had.”