Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has spotted some “worrying signs” when it comes to Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, who has made some strange comments this week involving the Reds.
Arteta effectively claimed that Arsenal had won the Premier League title in each of the last two seasons because his side had picked up more points than Liverpool. However, he also didn’t add the context that the Reds still had four games to play when he was talking about the points total that his team had bettered.
In reality, Liverpool could still finish on 91 points this season, with Arsenal never having broken the 90-point barrier. And it should add some spice to the weekend’s clash at Anfield when the Gunners will line up and give the league champions a guard of honor.
“One of the worrying signs of a manager under pressure is when interviews become more about validating work already done,” Carragher wrote in a column for The Telegraph.
“Fending off mounting criticism of the here and now amid increased questioning about what comes next — some of Arteta’s most recent public comments have veered into that territory, making him sound more like a fan on social media perpetuating a series of complaints about injuries and refereeing decisions.
“His remarks about Arsenal deserving to beat Paris St-Germain over two legs in the Champions League semi-final left him open to ridicule. Arteta comparing Liverpool’s title-winning performance to Arsenal’s runners-up spot in 2023 and 2024 on the eve of facing the new champions was not clever, either.”
(Image: Maja Hitij/Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Arne Slot has already moved to suggest that he will rotate his starting XI again for the Arsenal game. But Liverpool will not want to lose on home soil and could open up an 18-point gap over Arsenal by winning on Sunday.
“If Liverpool win their next three games, they will finish on 91 points,” Carragher continued.
“That’s more than any Arsenal side in history, which is why Arteta’s observation in midweek about Arne Slot winning with fewer points after 35 games than Arsenal won after 38 in the past two years will be mocked.
“For the record, Arsenal had 80 points at the exact same stage a year ago, and 81 the year before. That would have put them in second place right now, too.”
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Liverpool.com says: Arteta can only be saying these things to put his team in the right mindset for next season, but he is playing a dangerous game. By sounding so bold, even when what he is stating isn’t really true, he is opening himself up for more criticism.
What happens if Arsenal start next season slowly? What if it has a couple of draws in its opening five games, while Liverpool and Manchester City pull ahead? Having been at the Emirates Stadium for a while now, he is only putting even more pressure on himself.
If Arsenal doesn’t win a major trophy next season or at least take another marked step forward, Gunners fans might start to turn. When you start having to talk yourself up in the media, it isn’t usually a good sign.
