Mikel Arteta is warned by Alan Shearer about Arsenal’s transfer market error

Alan Shearer was aware that Arsenal’s failure to acquire a new striker this season would mean they would lose the Premier League title race.

With eleven games remaining and Liverpool leading by 13 points after an additional game, it appears that the Gunners’ hopes of winning the Premier League are over. Any dreams Mikel Arteta’s team had of winning the championship at the conclusion of the season seem to have been crushed by a humiliating 1-0 loss to West Ham last weekend and a 0-0 draw at Nottingham Forest midweek.

The Gunners would have an “excellent chance” of winning the title if they signed a central forward, according to Match of the Day commentator Shearer at the start of the season. However, following their summer acquisitions, which only comprised Raheem Sterling on loan, midfielder Mikel Merino, and defender Riccardo Calafiori, the Newcastle United legend realized they would not win the trophy.

Arteta’s failure to make one thing cost Arsenal league title

“I know they have injuries, but the talk about Arsenal and a center forward is never going away, unfortunately for Arsenal,” Shearer stated on The Rest Is Football podcast. even when every player was healthy.

“We stated that at the start of the season. If Arsenal adds a center forward, I think they will win the title. However, I wouldn’t like them if they didn’t, and they’re not winning the title right now because injuries have caught up with them.”

The long-term injuries to important attackers like Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz, and Bukayo Saka since December have only made the lack of a top striker more obvious. It was also perplexing that the Gunners’ management chose not to buy a forward during the January transfer window despite their injury crisis.

The team was “actively looking” to sign a striker who might “make an impact” in January, Arteta said. Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins was then pursued by the Spanish manager, but the club would not pay more than the rumored £45 million that was turned down. In the transfer market, Mathys Tel, Randal Kolo Muani, and Marcus Rashford all made moves to other teams; therefore, other opportunities were not taken advantage of.

Additionally, Arteta seemed irritated when a reporter implied that he was not willing to bring in a striker during a press conference in January.