Is Arteta Too Cautious to Take Arsenal That Next Step?

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·31 agosto 2025

Is Arteta Too Cautious to Take Arsenal That Next Step?

No team has a divine right to lift any trophy. Contrary to what even some of our own fanbase think, most Gooners are quite a loyal and patient bunch. It will be at least 22 years since Arsenal were Champions, yet some have the audacity to call us entitled. In reality, like all supporters, we just want to see the club we love try and be the best version of themselves.

Off the pitch we have done that this summer. It may have come too late but no one can say the Kroenke family have not invested in at least this transfer window. Defensively we are one of the best in the country and have a young squad who will only get better. There is a lot to like about this version of the Gunners, but at the end of last season there were question marks over our manager.

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You shouldn’t take for granted how hard it is to go to Anfield and restrict them and at times control the game. You have to tactically be a good coach to be able to do that. Yet in Mikel Arteta’s bid to fix us defensively, has he gone too far the other way? Is he overthinking things? Micro-managing the likes of Martinelli?

Going into the summer, there was pressure on the Spaniard to be able to look in the mirror and recognise his mistakes. That’s not easy to do and not all can do that. The 43-year-old’s legacy at the Emirates will be decided if he can put his ego to one side and realise he has made what was once one of the most entertaining teams to watch, boring. Success and failure will be decided on if our boss is too stubborn to tweak his ethos.

A cautious approach at Anfield

Sunday was the perfect illustration of those principles. It seems really harsh to be too critical when at the home of the Champions the match was drifting to a 0-0 draw which would have meant a credible away point and a healthy seven on the board. After all, the game was decided by a moment of magic that would not happen every week.

That is if your point of view is in isolation. For those looking at the bigger picture, it has happened too many times now. Jamie Carragher has said he was worried that Liverpool were becoming too open, wanting to start with too many attacking players and could become Kevin Keegan’s version of Newcastle in the 90s. Well, the Sky pundit can relax because no one would ever call this fixture too open.

Forget attacking players, no one was taking any risks in midfield and at times players were moving at a pace where you could have been mistaken for thinking this was a pre-season friendly. Because it is only the third game of the campaign, I assumed with 20 minutes to go both teams might settle for honours even and not dare take any risks to lose. Yet that appeared to be the mindset from the very first second.

In reality Arne Slot out-thought Mikel Arteta, leading his rival into a false sense of security. What do you do when the Champions are letting you have all the ball in the first half and barely touching the ball in your penalty area? Do you go for the throat? Do you gamble? Do you take the initiative? Or do you too start acting content with a stalemate?

Eberechi Eze (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Where is the bravery?

People misunderstand the term bravery in football. Courage is not just tackling your opponent, throwing your body in the way or heading the ball away. It is who demands the ball, who is not afraid to play a risky pass, who takes the responsibility, who runs at that man.

Whatever you think of Gary Neville and Roy Keane on the Stick To Football podcast, they are two winners. They explained at Man United they won so many games late on because the dressing room had the personalities where they would prefer to risk losing for the reward of a win than ever settle for a draw.

It would not be accurate to say our squad lack those characters because you have to assume they are being instructed to play this way. Bizarrely in the final third yesterday, the two best teams in the country seemed more scared to take a risk in the final third yet were both comfortable to pass the ball sideways between their keeper and defenders. That is happening throughout the sport right now and it is going to end up costing a team a cup final.

With Arsenal realising Liverpool had little ambition, we resisted ourselves and suddenly it became a game of chess. It played into Slot’s hands because the Dutchman knew the law of averages would mean a spell where the Reds had momentum which would lift the Kop. He could then rely on a moment of magic to win a game without playing well.

We only rolled the dice when we were forced to, bringing on a 15-year-old in the 88th minute who gave the ball away because he is 15. Why is he ahead of Trossard and Nwaneri in the pecking order? Where was the kitchen sink?

It is not a disgrace if Arteta is a good manager but not great. There is no shame if he is not the man to get us over the line. You could say Arsenal stood still, let the moment pass them by, scared to make that next step. How long have we been saying that?

Dan Smith

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