Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has come under a fair bit of criticism recently.
The Gunners were widely expected to be one of the favourites to win the Premier League title this season after going close in each of the last two campaigns.
Arsenal are still in the mix for the title, but they haven’t quite had the kind of start to the season that Arteta and his bosses at Arsenal would’ve liked.
The North Londoners have dropped points in five of their first 10 Premier League games this season and they suffered their first loss in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
The common theme in some of Arsenal’s recent results is that Arteta has decided against using Raheem Sterling, a player he signed from Chelsea on loan on transfer deadline day.
Many Arsenal supporters now think Arteta has lost faith in Sterling.
Arsenal fans think Mikel Arteta ‘doesn’t trust’ Raheem Sterling
Sterling has played just 333 minutes of football since joining Arsenal. He has started only four games, two of which have come in the EFL Cup.
The England international has been an unused substitute in the Gunners’ defeats to Newcastle United and Inter Milan. He didn’t get a minute in the draw against Liverpool either.
Arsenal supporters have now had their say on the situation.
One Arsenal fan tweeted: “Can clearly see Arteta doesn’t trust Sterling unless it’s against bad teams in the cup. Panic signing in the Summer and should never have signed him.”
Another wrote: “The only attacking player we bought in the summer on deadline day is not good enough again. The manager has had enough of him it seems and doesn’t trust him unless in the Carabao Cup against bad teams. How on earth we didn’t improve our attacking departments in the summer is crazy.”
| Games played | Goals | Assists | |
| Raheem Sterling | 8 | 1 | 1 |
“So Sterling isn’t trusted at all. Meaning we haven’t done anything with the attack at all. If anything, it’s gone backwards due to Trossard looking terrible,” said another.
Another Arsenal supporter posted: “Three goals since the international break, absolutely shocking from us. Clear as day Arteta has little to no faith in Sterling. Our inability to learn from last season’s mistakes in not having a goal machine continues to haunt us this season.”
Mikel Arteta hasn’t trusted another Arsenal player recently
Sterling is an experienced campaigner who has scored goals at the highest level in the past.
Yes, the Englishman isn’t quite the player he once was, but refusing to bring him on when Arsenal have needed a goal doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Sterling, who earns £100k-a-week at Arsenal, isn’t the only one who hasn’t got enough chances recently – Ethan Nwaneri hasn’t played a lot either despite Martin Odegaard’s absence.
The teenager has shown a lot more promise in the number 10 role than Leandro Trossard, and it’s a shame that Arteta hasn’t trusted him enough to start more games.
With Odegaard back now, Nwaneri’s chances of regular game time will take more of a hit, but that boy is a star and we’re sure he will get his chances in the coming months.
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