Not starting Kieran Tierney was a tactical blunder by Mikel Arteta as the Gunners' hopes of a revival of their Premier League title charge ended.
Arsenal had looked so positive but faced a collapse in the final games of the campaign, with Manchester City now champions of England again after the Gunners fell to a defeat to struggling Nottingham Forest, who all but gave themselves breathing room at the bottom of the table. Tierney was left on the bench again by the Spaniard as he made the unprecedented tactical tweaks that saw Jakub Kiwior move in to left back spot with Thomas Partey at right-back and Ben White at centre-half.
The former Celtic star has been left in something of cold storage this campaign, but Arsenal fans, and club legend Tony Adams couldn't see the sense in making such changes and the Englishman believes the Gunners played right in to Forest's hands with the team selection.
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Arteta may have dropped the ultimate hint on Tierney's future, with the likes of Newcastle United and Aston Villa reportedly leading the charge for his signature in the summer. The 25-year-old has made 100 appearances at the Emirates but could be set to leave in lieu of more game time.
Adams said of the tactics on Sky Sports: "I've been really disappointed. Football is about relationships. Ben White has been great with Saka on the right, all of a sudden he's put Partey in there. Kiwior - we’ve got Tierney on the bench. What is Arteta trying?
"What is that team selection saying to me? Do we want Partey to play there next season? I don’t get it to be honest.
"They'll expose us and they will do it again, again and again. They will wait for the counter-attack, we played into their hands."
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