The Gunners are stumbling towards a top-ten finish. However, much more was expected of them this season after their manager’s bright start in the dugout. He, in turn, has blamed unnamed insiders for sabotaging the team’s season.
“The best thing has been to keep a team, a staff, employees, and everybody together,”
“In those circumstances when you are not winning and when there are so many people, some inside and some outside trying to hurt.
“To keep them together and block that and be so strong, I think that is some achievement, as normally when that happens, that cracks and everything falls and it didn’t.”
the Spaniard said in his Brighton pre-match press conference.
While Arteta did not reveal any names during his rant, he did admit that the so-called ‘insiders’ were no longer at the club, which inevitably led to speculation over their identities.
Arsenal are currently ninth in the league table – 25 points behind leaders Manchester City. However, the Gunners have enjoyed a resurgence recently and are looking to win their fifth match in a row. They beat Crystal Palace in their previous match with Gabriel Martinelli and Nicolas Pepe netting stoppage-time winners.
Nevertheless, Arteta’s side has won only 17 games this season. In comparison, they have dropped points in 20 matches, which includes 13 losses. They endured an especially torrid run at the start of the campaign – winning just one game between matchday 5 and 17.
Their form picked up after that, but inconsistencies plagued them throughout the season. They are currently on 58 points, and a win, coupled with favorable results elsewhere, would take them above Everton and Tottenham into the seventh position.
