Another Arsenal legend in defender Martin Keown has spoken out, on how he saw his former team more or less crumble apart at the San Siro in Milan on Wednesday night in the Champions League, and can understand why manager Arsene Wenger is so frustrated at his current squads lack of winning mentality and backbone.
Speaking in a national newspaper, Martin Keown a former heart of the Arsenal defence, said to reporters:
“As a former Arsenal player, I have a lot of respect for what Arsene Wenger and his staff have achieved and I can understand why he was so unhappy with his players after what I saw in Milan.”
“They seemed lost without the ball. To be a dominant defender, you really need to know the role of the person next to you, in front of you and beyond. This allows you to give information, encourage players and, if necessary, demand the same from your team-mates.”
“But when players are unsure and confused, you get the passive behaviour we saw at the San Siro. I didn’t see the communication you expect from leaders because players seemed unclear about their responsibilities.”
Surely though it has to fall back at the manager though not just the players, who failed to lead his side, even after going down to 2 – 0 against Milan, was not doing anything to push his team forward, at 4 – 0 was still sat on the bench looking glum, maybe it’s about time as well that the manager has to be looked at as well for the lack of leadership during a game.
