Arsenal are known to be pondering appointing Antonio Conte as Arteta’s successor. It is believed Arsenal will give the Spaniard until October to change their fortunes before having to part ways with him.
It is no secret that Mikel Arteta is under severe pressure at the moment. Multiple defeats, limp performances and questionable tactics have the Spaniard in the hottest of hot seats.
The Gunners had an unconvincing start to the 2021/22 campaign. They crumbled to back-to-back 2-0 defeats to Brentford and Chelsea in their first two top-flight matches. Arsenal will now look to Conte should Arteta fail to prove himself.
Now or Never
Arsenal have had to deal with a host of injuries and a Covid-19 outbreak in August. However, the Gunners’ board were ready to continue backing Arteta. The former Arsenal man has five games to prove his worth.
Following the defeat to Chelsea, he insisted that when his first team absentees return and the new signings find their feet, the results will ‘100%’ improve. To make matters worse, Arsenal take on champions Manchester City in their next league game.
It seems only fair to properly assess Arteta when he has his full complement of players available. But the main concern is whether he can keep Arsenal afloat until players return.
After the challenge of Guardiola, comes the first international break of the season. This precedes a run of seemingly favorable fixtures for Arteta. This run will prove to be crucial for Arteta in saving his job. Else, he must bid farewell to the Emirates.
The Italian is now out of work after leaving Inter Milan following a historic title win. Conte was in talks with Spurs to take over Mourinho but opted out for a variety of reasons. The non-alignment of their goals concerned him.
Arsenal would have to convince Conte though. The Italian has never been with a club for over three years. Conte chooses to sign established players over developing youth. So, while being an outstanding manager, he would go against everything Arsenal hired Arteta for.
Conte won 51 of his 76 Premier League games in charge of Chelsea. He led them to their sensational 2016-17 title win. In 2018, he was later relieved of his duties.
As featured on GoonerNews.com
