Theo Walcott has claimed that he felt ‘a lot of fear’ in the Arsenal players during Southampton’s 1-1 draw at the Emirates Stadium.
The Saints took an early lead thanks to the former Gunners man after his cool chip over Bernd Leno. However, the Reds struck back through Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after a mazy run from youngster Bukayo Saka.
Speaking after the game, the Englishman said he feels his side dropped two points at a ground the St Mary’s outfit have yet to win at in the Premier League.
Walcott said: “I felt a lot of fear in Arsenal tonight, to be honest.” (via football.london)
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I’ve voiced my doubts over Mikel Arteta during Arsenal’s barren spell in front of goal and winless run, but even a magician would struggle to conjure up an ounce of confidence for the current first-team squad.
Whilst the current mental state of the side is poor and the former Manchester City coach can do not a lot to fix it, it would be naive to rid him of any blame. His poor tactics since the campaign started has slowly but surely rid the side of the standards they were playing at towards the end of last season as they lifted the FA Cup.
Walcott’s comments over the side’s confidence levels weren’t needed for anyone who watched the first half of the clash with the Saints. Ralph Hasenhutl’s men dominated the opening period across the board, having more possession, shots and completing more passes.
So how do you fix it? Well, it won’t be easy but maybe releasing the handbrake and letting players express themselves would be a good start. With such a defensive look on the side, as seen yesterday, the players could use some freedom to push up the pitch in an attempt to loosen the shackles.
