Reflecting on the defeat of Arsenal against Paris Saint-Germain over two legs in the semi-final of the Champions League, Chris Sutton told the last 'It's all!' Podcast that Mikel Arteta 'must hold his hands' about the bad decision not to bring in the attacking reinforcements last summer.
The former professional player who became Pundit said that the fault for Arsenal who lost in the Premier League and Champions League is only based on the Spanish manager, who has had five years to build a team that can compete on all fronts.
He argued that the late pursuit of Ollie Watkins in Aston Villa in January is proof that Arteta knew 'he had it wrong' in building a trophy-winning attack for this season.
Despite early chances, Arsenal was well beaten on Wednesday evening in Paris, with excellent finishes by Fabian Ruiz and Achraf Hakimi who sink the last hope of the shooter on silverware.
“Arsenal was competitive in both legs,” Sutton told the podcast.
'But I thought PSG was the better team and the Gunners deserved to go out. Will there be regret? Well, Arteta has been there for five years now and I think it is obvious to look at Arsenal who does not bring in last summer.
'At this level they are fine margins. They made that last-minute game for Ollie Watkins in the January window, of which I think it was a recognition that they were wrong.
“Five seasons now with Arteta: I think there are certainly things he could have done that Arsenal gave a better chance to win silverware.”
Sutton qualified his criticism of Arsenal's manager by saying that the club is generally 'in the right direction' and is not 'a million miles away' of competing for the highest awards.
“Arsenal's display in the first 25 minutes in the Parc des Princes was phenomenal,” Sutton described.
“They are not a million miles away. I am not the problems on the field. I think they made mistakes in terms of recruitment.
“What happened this season happened; They are done with trophies. What happens next is the most important thing. Arteta should think in the same line as I – they were not proactive enough because they should have been on the market. '
Co-host Ian Ladyman was less nice for Arsenal and expressed 'surprise' about their lack of progress this season.
The football editor of the post said that injuries were no excuse for the lack of consistency and inability of Arsenal to stack pressure on the final winners of the League.
Ladyman argued: 'They were disturbed this season. Similarly, however, they are not the only team that has disputed with injuries.
'They are getting forward – but what makes me worries is that they did not improve this season. That surprised me.
“You say they are close, but are they real? They are a long way behind Liverpool – they came to the last four of the Champions League, but they were well defeated.
'If you are a big club, there are ebb and flow in your season. If you have good spells, you have to grab them. I remember that Arsenal destroyed the city at home and then followed it by losing Newcastle at home.
“If you win great, if you win well, it should activate something – it can't just stand out as an insulated version.”
To hear the full debate about the progress of Arsenal under Arteta and Ian and Chris's choices for the season defender, listen to “It's all started!” Now, wherever you get your podcasts.