It was a pretty miserable day for Arsenal on Saturday.
The Gunners, the reigning FA Cup champions, were knocked out of the competition after losing 1-0 away to Southampton yesterday.
It wasn’t only the defeat that upset Arsenal fans – it was the team selection and subsequent performance.
Mikel Arteta had some heavy hitters on the pitch but two who were more miss than hit once again were Willian and Nicolas Pepe.
The North Londoners’ wide players looked devoid of any creativity or inspiration and when chances did open up for Pepe in particular, he wasted them.
Willian and Pepe, who are earning a combined £320,000 per week at the Emirates Stadium, have managed a total of five goals and six assists from 43 games between them in all competitions since the 2020-21 campaign began.
And Arsenal boss Arteta, speaking to Football London, has admitted that both simply need to work harder to change their fortunes this season.
He said, when asked if they can turn it around: “Well, I hope so and we’re gonna keep supporting them as much as we can as a coaching staff and as a club because that’s what they need. They need to keep working harder and try and improve their performances.”
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