Martin Keown says Arteta losing to Unai Emery was ‘an embarrassment’ for Arsenal

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Former Arsenal defender, Martin Keown, was in no mood to beat around the bush last night as he slammed Mikel Arteta for being ‘outsmarted’ by Unai Emery’s Villerral side.

The Gunners couldn’t get that elusive goal to make it into the Europa League final and bowed out on aggregate, 2-1.

Arsenal’s performance was not one you’d expect to see from a team playing for a place in the final of a European tournament. Lacklustre at times, the showing summed up what has been a pretty dismal season all around.

And speaking to BT Sport after the game, Keown said that Arteta had been outdone by former boss Emery, something Keown claimed the Gunners boss should be embarrassed about.

“The team didn’t turn up. Whether it was motivation or tactics. He was outsmarted by the previous manager, which is also a bit of an embarrassment,” Keown said.

“Both games the false 9, and then today when we changed the midfield, we didn’t look like we had the experience to adapt or change. We looked lost and allowed them just to play. We haven’t gone down fighting.”

The Gunners now face a fight to even finish in the top half of the Premier League under Arteta. Despite winning the FA Cup last season, patience is wearing thin among some fans.

And with supporters also unhappy at the owners, The Emirates is slowly becoming a bit of a toxic environment at the moment.

TBR View: Arteta now under pressure, other managers would have gone

We’ve seen in the past that clubs have acted quicker than this and got rid. But Arteta seems to have the backing of the board for now and it would be a major surprise to see the Kroenke’s make a rash move.

Arteta has bought himself time with that cup win but he is now under pressure. That performance last night, as Keown said, was poor and he’ll need a reaction in the final games to help cement his job.