Merson calls Arteta deluded

Paul Merson has told Mikel Arteta that he needs to bring about wholesome changes to Arsenal.

“He’s deluded if he thinks he can take this team anywhere in it’s current form because the players are not up to it and the mentality is not right.,” the former Arsenal and England star wrote in his weekly Daily Star column.

“They let in a weak goal and played way too open. And they look just as vulnerable as ever. It’s early days but I think he’s got his work cut out.”

Arteta himself seemed very positive about Arsenal.

“I’m very pleased with some of the things I’ve seen in terms of attitude, character, the passion we showed, and the fight and the spirit the team showed,” said Arteta.

“(It was) spot on, probably better than I expected over 90 minutes.

“A lot of things that happened in the game we prepared, I think they understood them and they tried to take them on board and we liked the final product at the end.

“We have to analyse overall the performance and I think there are positives to take and obviously a lot of room for improvement in other areas.

“It will be a process.”

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