Arsenal legend Gilberto Silva has fired a warning at Mikel Arteta if the Gunners fail to win the Premier League this season.
The north London giants find themselves in a battle for the title alongside Manchester City, who after winning on Saturday currently sit top of the Premier League with Arsenal due to face United later today at Old Trafford.
One slip up in the final two games from Arsenal would realistically concede the title to Pep Guardiola’s side, such is the quality Arteta has to compete against if he is to end the Gunners’ 20-year wait for a Premier League title.
Yet despite this, Gilberto has issued a warning to Arsenal if they don’t win the Premier League.
Gilberto says questions will be raised if Arsenal can’t win silverware
Speaking to the Mirror, the Arsenal icon suggested that questions might soon be raised around Arteta if Arsenal fail to win the Premier League, with the Basque coach only winning the FA Cup and two Community Shields during his tenure.
Whilst Arteta’s main mission at Arsenal has so far been to rebuild the club from top to bottom, silverware is what fans will be demanding if the Gunners fall short next season, and the pressure could be on for success to translate into trophies.
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Gilberto said: “You play for Arsenal, you play for a big club like them, the expectation is quite high. I believe that what happened last season, they were not expecting that, it’s my opinion.
“But this season, I think they are very solid. They consolidate what they planned a few years ago. They consolidate the team, they have the manager controlling players on his hand. He knows his team very well. But that is a point that people will start to ask.”
Trophies are a must for Arsenal next season
With the Gunners likely to fall short of silverware this season, next year will be massive for Arsenal in terms of bringing a trophy back to north London having last won a major accolade back in 2020.
There’s no doubt that Arteta has done an incredible job in transforming Arsenal back into a giant of English football, yet it will mean little if this success doesn’t result in tangible silverware.
Indeed, with City around for the time being, winning trophies is difficult for the majority of clubs, yet Arsenal need to break the mold if they’re to go to that next level under Arteta.