Gary Neville thinks that Mikel Arteta regrets Arsenal's decision to sign Raheem Sterling on loan last summer, because it made it harder to get a transfer in January for a new attacker over the line.
Although they have four important attackers with injury, Arteta has chosen to use Midfielder Mikel Merino as an unorthodox focal point of his attack in the past two weeks with Sterling on the couch.
And the international of England, whose parent club Chelsea remains, has only contributed one competition help and no goals. That makes Neville think that the club did not want to sign him in the first place.
“You know what I think they did? In the last part of the summer transfer window I am not sure if Arsenal Raheem wanted to sign Sterling,” Neville said on the overlap with Sky Bet.
“I'm not sure if Arsenal, as a club, wanted him. I think Arteta's thought can play Sterling in all positions at the top and in fact told the club to get him as cover.
“I think he said that. He can play over the front line, so that Arteta has considered him his second or third striker.
“They supported him and I think that in January the same species postponed another deal because they think we brought in sterling and Arteta did not really use it.”
After the Gunners dropped two more points against Nottingham Forest on Wednesday evening, to leave them 13 running behind leaders Liverpool, Arteta is now shifting to the Champions League round of 16 draw with PSV Eindhoven.
And asked if their title hopes were over after the Forest patronage, Arteta said: “It's about what we can do.
“It was a week earlier, two weeks earlier, three months earlier. Today we dropped two points that are very painful, we have the Champions League, a wonderful competition for us.
“I am very disappointed not to win, the standard was different from the previous game [a 1-0 defeat to West Ham ] With the energy and the willingness to make things happen.
“We dominated the game, apart from one experience in the second half and one or two giveaway actions that they could run. Apart from that nothing.
“When we opened them, we missed the quality in the last pass and delivery and they are more efficient.”