Mikel Arteta and Edu only have themselves to blame if Tottenham beat Arsenal to top four

Mikel Arteta reviews Brighton defeat

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta and technical director Edu only have themselves to blame if the Gunners miss out on Champions League qualification this season. Arsenal were in a strong position three weeks ago following their 1-0 win at Aston Villa.

Arteta’s side sat fourth in the table after the March 19 fixture, six points clear of north London rivals Tottenham. But Arsenal are now three points behind Spurs after back-to-back defeats, albeit with a game in hand.

Saturday’s visit of Brighton was a must-win for the Gunners. But their first-half performance mirrored that of the 3-0 loss at Crystal Palace on Monday.

There was a lack of urgency and intensity until a five-minute push at the end following Martin Odegaard’s flukey goal. But strikes from Leandro Trossard and Enock Mwepu were enough to seal a first win in eight for Graham Potter’s side.

Arsenal were a depleted outfit, with Thomas Partey missing following the thigh injury he picked up at Palace. But Arteta and Edu are to blame for the severe lack of squad depth at the Emirates.

Arsenal allowed six first-team players to leave in January, either on loan or permanent deals. However, they did not bring any new signings in.

That meant there were only 18 first-team outfielders remaining at the club. Any injury, suspension or Covid absence would mean an academy graduate having to be on the bench in the business end of the season.

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Saturday saw youngsters Miguel Azeez, Zak Swanson and Omari Hutchinson all named among the substitutes to show the real lack of depth available to Arteta. Azeez is the only one to have made an appearance for the senior Arsenal team – a brief cameo off the bench against Dundalk in the Europa League in 2020.

Partey is set for an extended period on the sidelines and Kieran Tierney has already been ruled out for the remainder of the season. So there are set to be plenty of opportunities for the youngsters to spend time in a match day squad.

But Arsenal already had the youngest team in the Premier League. Their decision to offload players in January and not recruit could cost them a top-four spot.

Granted, the likes of Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Calum Chambers were not getting regular football under Arteta. But they both would undoubtedly have featured more if they had stayed.

You cannot foresee injuries but Tierney and Partey in particular have patchy fitness records since joining the Gunners. Arteta has only been a manager since December 2019 and Edu technical director six months before then.

They are both still relatively inexperienced in their respective roles. But many supporters questioned the January business and now the club’s naivety could scupper their hopes of a successful end to the season.

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