Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and midfielder Granit Xhaka were left frustrated last night after their side’s 2-0 defeat to Newcastle United at St James’ Park.
The Gunners needed to win to stay ahead of North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the race for fourth in the Premier League, but Arteta’s side were thoroughly outplayed as the hosts won 2-0.
After a scoreless first half, Ben White scored an own goal and Bruno Guimares sealed the win for Newcastle late on to leave Arsenal in fifth place, two points behind fourth-placed Tottenham with just one round of games left.
Tottenham, who have a vastly superior goal difference to Arsenal’s, need only to avoid defeat at already relegated Norwich City on Sunday to secure fourth place and a spot in next season’s UEFA Champions League.
“Normally I sit here and I can defend [the team],” Arteta said during his post-match press conference.
“Today Newcastle were 100 times better than us in every department from beginning to end and it is very hard to accept it. We didn’t cope, we didn’t compete.
“We never got into the game. We put ourselves in trouble, we lost every duel. Newcastle deserved to win the game, probably by a bigger margin.”
The Spaniard, whose contract was recently extended, however accepted responsibility for the devastating defeat.
“No, I am the maximum responsible,” he said when asked if he felt let down by his team. “If someone has created an expectation this year, it is those players and I will always defend them. But [tonight] that is a really difficult thing to do.”
Xhaka was unsparing in his assessment of Arsenal’s limp performance, the Switzerland midfielder laying into his teammates and saying they did not “have the balls to play” as their Champions League ambitions got blown away.
“From the first minute to the 90th we didn’t deserve to be on the pitch today,” Xhaka said during his post-match interview.
“What happened was a disaster performance and like this you don’t deserve to play Champions League, you don’t even deserve to play Europa League. It’s very hard to take at the moment. I don’t know why we’re not doing what the coaches ask for.
“If someone isn’t ready for this game, stay at home. It doesn’t matter the age. If you’re not ready or you’re nervous, stay on the bench, stay at home, don’t come here. We need people to have the balls to come here and play. We knew this game was maybe the most important for us but, with a performance like this, it’s not acceptable.”
Arsenal must beat Everton at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday and hope Tottenham lose at Norwich to achieve a near impossible turnaround to claim fourth place.
