24 October 2023 , 09:06
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Arsenal legend Ian Wright has taken aim at two Gunners players following their lacklustre performances against Chelsea.
Mikel Arteta's side found themselves 2-0 down at Stamford Bridge on Saturday before scoring two late goals to rescue a draw. Wright reckons that his old side were "average" for large parts of the game, as Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard both struck in the final 13 minutes of normal time to earn what could prove to be an important point in the Premier League title race.
But Jorginho's performance in midfield, one which lacked "real drive and movement," and Oleksandr Zinchenko's struggles on the left-hand side without now former teammate Granit Xhaka - who was sold to Bayer Leverkusen this summer - had Wright concerned. "Can I be honest?" the ex-Arsenal striker asked on his podcast, Wrighty's House.
"I'm thinking with Mikel in that situation you've got to recognise, [Takehiro] Tomiyasu starts that game, for me. Zinchenko, without Xhaka and what Xhaka did for us, it's not the same role, he doesn't seem to be able to do it without the way Xhaka was playing and giving him that license.
"I was just very surprised that in that game where I believed, with [Raheem] Sterling in his form as well, you have to dampen it down. Tomiyasu starts for me. And I just feel the midfield, Jorginho in there going back to his old place, no disrespect, with his lack of real drive and movement, I thought they had his number."
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Jorginho and Zinchenko, the latter of whom was hooked half-time for Tomiyasu, weren't the only ones on the end of Wright's criticism. He believes that Gunners boss Arteta should've noticed how midfielder and captain Martin Odegaard was struggling to make an impact earlier in the game and brought substitute Kai Havertz on sooner than the 78th minute.
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Oleksandr Zinchenko was criticised by Ian Wright (Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
So too was Jorginho for lacking "drive and movement" (Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images)"You know what? They had Martin Odegaard's number as well," Wright admitted. "It was one of those where we needed to recognise quicker.
"I don't know why Kai didn't start, because I'm thinking to myself, we can't have the running [in attack], it's not working, we can't get the ball to them to turn them and run. Havertz, for me, should've started."
Arteta next has a chance to right his supposed wrongs when the Gunners face Sevilla in the Champions League on Tuesday. Arsenal then return to Premier League action on Saturday by hosting bottom club Sheffield United before a visit to West Ham in the Carabao Cup.