I can understand that Arsenal are not going to be everyone’s cup of tea, especially when your side has spent ridiculous amounts of money to position itself as a title challenger only to fall into sixth place mediocrity. Therefore, when listening to Gary Neville’s Arsenal criticism there is some sympathy and understanding, but not much. To be honest, reading it back even that is generous.
For context, Gary Neville effectively described fourth position as Arsenal’s ceiling. Adding that after two and a half years at the club, Mikel Arteta would have taken the club as far as it could go should they make the top four. Thankfully, Jamie Carragher was on hand to produce some reasonable takes on the situation, but it cannot be understated how ill-informed and ignorant a judgement could be from a typically informative and educative pundit.
Speaking at a Sky Bet event Neville said, “I think Mikel Arteta is a good operator. My concern is if Arsenal finish fourth this season – which to be fair, I think is 50/50, I still think there’s a long way to in that race – but if they finish fourth, that’s in some ways as good as it gets.
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“You’ve got Pep [Guardiola], [Jurgen] Klopp, Man United, Chelsea, where can Arsenal go? They’re not going to compete.
“Mikel Arteta is a brilliant coach, I love that we’re seeing a team that he’s getting the maximum out of, I can see exactly how he wants to play, we all can.
“But he gets to fourth [and] if he was really hard about it, he’d probably say “right, that’s the best I can do there, I’m going now and getting my next job.”
If you haven’t already spat your tea over your screen at the use of Man United as an obstacle to Arsenal’s ascent, then bear with me as we break down how naive an assessment of Arsenal this is. Not only does it ignore the summer of 2021, an effective reboot for the club’s recruitment, but it entirely forgets that Liverpool themselves were in a very similar situation not so long ago. It is worth noting that after the summer, Neville said he couldn't see the now clear strategy of the club in the market.
Fourth being ‘as good as it gets’ for a side that has the youngest team in the league is quite a claim. Players such as Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith-Rowe, Ben White, Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Magalhaes, Aaron Ramsdale, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Kieran Tierney and Martin Odegaard are yet to reach their 25th birthdays. Most several years away from it. Yet, they are all integral to this top-four push.
Edu Gaspar, the club’s technical director has the aim of combining this youth with world-class players. 2021 saw the youth, if they alone reach fourth spot, the potential of adding a world-class element to this group is an exciting one.
Not to mention that Liverpool and Manchester City’s managerial situations are by no means set in stone and Chelsea’s current upheaval opens the door further. Notice how I, rightly, haven’t put the chaotic mess that is Manchester United into this group.
Then there is Arteta himself. The first coach to take this club by a strong ruthless hand, overhaul the squad and make decisions that are for the benefit of Arsenal’s progression and rise to the top.
The ownership have bridges to build with the fan base and since the full takeover in 2018 have taken steps to try and achieve this. It has not been perfect, the less said about the Super League fiasco the better. Although in reflection, Josh Kroenke admitted that it was a mistake. Fan Advisory Boards and regular Fan Forum's have been created and the work in the local community has stepped up even more.
football.london understands that Arsenal are preparing for another significant outlay in the summer backed by owner Stan Kroenke, under the direction of his son Josh Kroenke in collaboration with Arteta and Edu. Arsenal have changed as a club and that might be too much it seems for Neville to appreciate at present.
There are still ten games to go, but if what has been available to Arteta this season can reach the Champions League, the potential for more is obvious. Shoving Arsenal into a box of top four being this club’s peak is a dangerous one. One that Neville will hopefully learn very soon.
