Wright singles out Arsenal summer signing for criticism as he claims fans ‘can’t keep saying’ one thing
Ian Wright has singled out Arsenal summer signing Mikel Merino for criticism after the Gunners lost 1-0 at Newcastle United on Saturday.
Mikel Arteta’s side were hit with another huge blow to their Premier League title ambitions this season as they were narrowly defeated at St James’ Park.
An Alexander Isak goal was enough to give Newcastle the win and means Arsenal have now taken just one point from their last three Premier League fixtures.
Arsenal are still five points behind defending champions Manchester City, who occupy second place, after they lost 2-1 to Bournemouth on Saturday, while the Gunners are now seven points adrift of leaders Liverpool.
And Wright picked out Merino for not getting “tight enough” in midfield but admitted the Spain international is probably still getting used to his surroundings.
Wright said on Premier League Productions: “Listen, Odegaard has been out for a while now. We talk about our managers… Fabio Vieira we haven’t seen too much of him, he was a player who was supposed to be in the same mold.
“Emile Smith Rowe has moved on, gone to Fulham, and he’s doing okay for himself.
“We’ve seen Ethan Nwaneri come on, the youngster, and he’s got to come on in a game for a team that’s trying to challenge for the title and it is a lot of pressure on him.
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“You just feel that, at this stage of the season, ten games in, we should not be playing and being as tepid as we are, not creating enough, not putting them under enough pressure.
“I thought, again, Merino wasn’t tight enough in and around the midfield. I think he’s still getting up to speed.”
The current form of Arsenal is worrying Wright, who was hoping they could win the Premier League title this season, with the Gunners struggling to get shots on target.
Wright added: “It really is quite frustrating to be ten games in and feeling like we feel now and that’s only because we know how tough it is to try and chase down Manchester City.
“One shot on target against Bournemouth, one shot on target today. It’s not good enough. It’s not good enough for a team that is going for the title.
“There is a lot of work to be done in that dressing room. We can’t keep saying that we’re missing Martin Odegaard. We can’t keep saying that because we know we’re missing that.”
