- Arsenal have taken 11 points from their opening five games and are unbeaten
- But Paul Scholes has not been impressed by the Gunners so far this term
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Paul Scholes has revealed Arsenal have disappointed him this season, despite the Gunners remaining undefeated after their opening five matches.
Mikel Arteta’s men have picked up 11 points from a possible 15 after being handed a tricky set of fixtures including trips to Aston Villa, Tottenham and Manchester City.
They picked up wins at Villa and their north London rivals before holding City to a 2-2 draw in an ill-tempered clash on Sunday, and are just two points off top spot as they bid to finally get the better of Pep Guardiola’s side.
But Scholes has not been impressed with how they have been playing in the opening weeks of the campaign.
Speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate, brought to you by Sky Bet, Scholes said: ‘Arsenal, at some point, have got to beat them [Manchester City at the Etihad]. They nearly did it, and it was a great effort.
Paul Scholes has claimed he’s ‘disappointed’ with Arsenal’s start to the season
Mikel Arteta’s men have taken 11 points from a possible 15 but have not impressed Scholes
Scholes feels Arsenal are title contenders but has not liked the way they have been playing
‘I sat here at the start of the season and thought Arsenal might win the league, but I’ve been a little bit disappointed with their start to the season.’
Arsenal have only conceded three goals so far this term after having the best defensive record in the league last season.
They also scored 91 goals in 2023-24, and opted not to bring in a striker over the summer.
Yet the goals have dried up this season, with Arsenal only scoring eight times – fewer than 10th-placed Tottenham – and Manchester United legend Scholes has been unconvinced by Arteta’s attack in recent weeks.
‘Arsenal have been poor going forward this season,’ Scholes added. ‘You look at all the goals they scored last year, and everyone was talking about getting a centre forward in the summer and you thought they probably didn’t need it.
‘But five or six games in, it feels like Arsenal are struggling – it’s not quite clicking.’
Arsenal’s approach this season has split opinion. They have remained resolute at the back, with Rio Ferdinand claiming William Saliba and Gabriel are the best centre back pairing in Europe right now, while also continuing to thrive from set-pieces.
But they have not been at their free-flowing best going forwards. Arsenal were happy to surrender possession for long periods at Tottenham before snatching all three points from a corner, and they looked to hit City on the counter-attack as well.
Scholes feels Arsenal have not clicked in attack during the opening weeks of the season
Arteta’s Arsenal have also been criticised for their use of the ‘dark arts’ so far this season
It worked in the first half at the Etihad, as they came from behind to take a 2-1 lead, but after Leandro Trossard was sent off on the stroke of half time, they defended their box for the entire second half without offering an attacking threat.
The Gunners only managed 12.5 per cent possession in the second half, while Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber did not complete a successful pass in the whole game.
Arsenal were also accused of using the ‘dark arts’ to slow down the game, with multiple players going down for treatment only to get back to their feet moments later to play on.
It almost paid off as they held out until the 98th minute before John Stones popped up with a last-gasp equaliser.
City duo Bernardo Silva and Manuel Akanji hit out at Arsenal’s tactics in the aftermath of the stalemate, but Arteta defended his side’s approach, insisting he would have been ‘very thick’ to send his side out to attack once they were reduced to 10 men.
Despite criticism of their approach, Arsenal have kept themselves within touching distance of the top of the table, and now have an easier run of games on paper, as they prepare to face Leicester, Southampton and Bournemouth in their next three outings.
These matches appear to be the perfect opportunity to show the other side of their game where they can click as an attacking unit and prove their title credentials.
Paul Scholes was speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate, brought to you by Sky Bet
