Arsenal legend slams ‘disrespectful’ Mikel Arteta sack talk but admits it could come

Arsenal legend Nigel Winterburn says any talk of Mikel Arteta losing his job is ‘disrespectful’ but does admit there will be questions to answer if no silverware is won this season.

The Gunners are in an excellent position, sitting top of the Premier League and into the semi-finals of the Champions League where they take on Atletico Madrid.

It sounds great, and is, but the mood music has turned after recent defeats in the league and exits from the FA Cup and Carabao Cup.

There is a huge game against second-placed Manchester City on Sunday, which Arsenal must avoid defeat in or their title hopes will suffer an enormous blow.

However, a draw or certainly a win would leave Arteta and his men well on course to lift the Premier League trophy.

Winterburn admits that if Arsenal do fall short in the title race then Arteta will face questioning, but while his team is still contesting it then talk of a sacking is inappropriate.

‘To me, it’s not even something that I really even want to entertain because I think that’s very disrespectful to Arteta,’ the former full-back told HFM X. ‘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.

‘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.’

Reports have suggested that if Arteta fails to win any silverware this season then his job is in serious danger.

Winterburn’s former teammate at Arsenal, Tony Adams, has been openly critical of the current manager and his choice of captain.

In May last year, Jamie Carragher predicted a headache for the Arsenal board if they go another season without winning a trophy.

The Liverpool legend had praise for Arteta, but felt nearly 12 months ago that he had to start lifting trophies.

‘I’m a massive fan of Mikel Arteta, I think he’s a brilliant manager. The job he’s done, to get Arsenal where they are,’ Carragher told Sky Sports.

‘Let’s not forget, for a good few years it was them and Tottenham fighting for the Champions League positions.

‘They made this jump to compete with Manchester City and they followed it up again last season. And they’re the team that have pushed Liverpool this season.

‘This season felt like it should have been their season. There’s no doubt next season that the pressure will be on Mikel Arteta massively in terms of winning something and winning something big.

‘The Arsenal board, if they don’t do that [win a major trophy] will have a massive issue because they won’t want to change their manager, but there will be that many people saying: five or six years without a trophy.

‘They will be looking at how many managers can make that next step.’

‘The problem with changing Mikel Arteta because, as I said, he’s done a brilliant job at Arsenal,’ he added.

‘Arsenal could easily become what Chelsea are right now. They could go from a team coming second year in, year out to a team that doesn’t actually get into the Champions League.

‘That’s the big conundrum that Arsenal as a football club will have in 12 months, if Arsenal go close again don’t actually get across the line.’