The pressure is on Mikel Arteta to deliver a Premier League title this season but Arsenal have been in shaky form
Nigel Winterburn says calls for Mikel Arteta to be sacked if Arsenal do not win the Premier League this season are premature and “disrespectful.”
The Gunners have Manchester City hot on their heels and defeat on Sunday afternoon when the two giants meet would prove devastating. The 2-1 home defeat to Bournemouth last weekend only added to the relentless pressure on Arsenal as they look to win their first league title since 2004, having finished second in each of the three previous seasons.
Pep Guardiola’s City are able to close the gap to three points if they beat Arsenal, having already come out on top when the two sides met in the Carabao Cup final last month. Should City triumph three days later against Burnley, they could overtake the Gunners at the summit on goal difference.
Such an outcome would be disastrous for Arteta, handing City the impetus despite his side leading the table for the majority of this season. Understandably, anxiety within Arsenal circles is through the roof ahead of the crunch fixture.
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Should Arsenal squander their fourth consecutive title challenge, there’s a sense that consequences must follow, with some speculating that Arteta could be sacked or voluntarily resign. But Winterburn insists suggestions that he should face the axe if Arsenal don’t secure the Premier League crown this season are hasty.
Speaking via HFM X Arsenal, Winterburn said of Arteta’s potential dismissal: “To me, it’s not even something that I really even want to entertain because I think that’s very disrespectful to Arteta. I think it’s also disrespectful to the club to be talking about a manager that could present something to Arsenal that they haven’t had for a long time.
“I think most clubs will have a review at the end of the season. Depending on if Arsenal win anything, what they do, they’ll then look internally too, like always, not only at staff, but they’ll also look at players and where they can improve again. So I could say if Arsenal go and win at the weekend, most people say the title is virtually theirs. So it’s very interesting from three weeks ago how people were thinking to how they’re thinking now.”
The 62-year-old did, however, suggest there should be an inquest at the end of the season should Arsenal somehow crumble again. He added: “Any talk about Arteta, I think, is so disrespectful at this stage of the season. Get to the end of the season. If it doesn’t happen, then I agree, I think there will be a lot of things to answer as to why it went wrong. But we don’t know if that’s going to happen. That’s something I refuse to discuss at the moment.”
Winterburn claimed three league titles with Arsenal between 1989 and 1998. His Gunners side nearly threw away the first of these – much like Arteta’s team are at risking of doing currently. A poor run of results meant Arsenal travelled to Anfield on the final day of the 1988/89 season sitting second, three points adrift of their opponents. They needed a two-goal victory to overtake Liverpool on goal difference and steal the title.
Alan Smith found the net on 53 minutes to offer the north London side hope before Michael Thomas grabbed a sensational second to seal the trophy deep into stoppage time, completing one of the most remarkable turnaround tales in English football history.
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The former left-back compared the current situation, with many believing City now have the momentum, to how his own Arsenal side almost gifted Liverpool the title, only to prove their mettle at the last.
He said: “This season reminds me a little bit of 1989 when we won the league. In the two games before winning the title, we lost to Derby at home and then drew with Wimbledon.
“Nobody told us we’d go to Liverpool at Anfield and win by two goals. Most people told us it was impossible. Imagine what social media would have been like if it was around back then.
“So I’ve been in a similar situation. That was my first winning trophy at Arsenal as well. I fully understand what’s going on, and you’ve just got to focus on what’s ahead of you. Players and manager, they won’t be looking at anything else. A big performance on Sunday will push them a long, long way to being able to claim the Premier League title, which has eluded us for a long time.”
