Arsenal legend speaks out on why Mikel Arteta won’t win titles any time soon

Arsenal appointed Mikel Arteta as their new head coach in December, 2019 and even though there have been some disappointments since he arrived but there has however have been a lot of good signs, showing that the North Londoners will keep improving under him. Arsenal legend Paul Merson has however spoken out on why he Arteta’s Arsenal will not be winning any titles any time soon.

Mikel Arteta replaced Unai Emery in December after the former Sevilla boss looked like he had lost the dressing room as the players were not showing any fight in the matches which led to the gunners going on a run of matches without a win. Arsenal’s new head coach Mikel Arteta has however changed this for now as the players are now showing a lot of fight in the matches and apart from the UEFA Europa League defeat defeat against Olympiacos, the gunners have been impressive in most matches under the 38-year-old coach.

Despite all these encouraging signs under Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, former gunners striker Paul Merson says that the gunners will still not be able to win trophies if they can’t defend since all title-winning squads always need to have some important people at the back.

“Will Arsenal be challenging for titles soon? Even if Pep Guardiola was in charge, no. Not at the moment. Arsene Wenger used to say it all the time: it’s all about the players. And for Arsenal at the moment, it’s not a good enough team, not a good enough squad.” Paul Merson told Sky Sports.

“I like Mikel Arteta, I really do, and I think he’ll do better than the last manager Unai Emery, but at the same time, to challenge for the title I think they are a million miles off. They can’t defend, and if you can’t defend, you can’t challenge for titles.”

One of Arsenal’s chances of silverware this season ended when Olympiacos defeated them in the UEFA Europa League but Mikel Arteta will be hopeful that they put up a big fight in the FA Cup since they are already through to the quarter finals.