Chronicle Editor
FURIOUS Arsenal fans blocked Mikel Arteta’s car and told him to “do yourself a favour” and leave the club after Sunday’s 2-0 loss to Chelsea.
The Gunners have made the worst start to a season in their 118-year history, losing their opening two Premier League games to Brentford and Chelsea respectively.
Goals from the returning Romelu Lukaku and Reece James sealed the three points for the Blues, sending them to the top of the Premier League table.
The Arsenal players were booed off at both the half-time and full-time whistle as a result, and the Gunners find themselves in the bottom three.
Boss Arteta bizarrely remained upbeat when asked about the fan’s reaction to the result.
He said: “I must thank the fans, even when things were looking difficult they tried to give the players a boost.
“I see a lot of positives with the crowd and the team today.
“At the end I didn’t see any bad reaction with any of the players. But that is my opinion.
“Feeling sorry for yourself does not help.
“You have to face the challenge, face the criticism — because it will come.”
But it appears Arteta misjudged the fan’s mood as footage has emerged of furious Arsenal fans surrounding his car and calling for him to leave after the game.
One fan can be heard saying: “Arteta, was that good enough? Please leave the club.”
Another furiously repeated: “Mikel, do yourself a favour.”
The Arsenal boss, clearly frustrated with being held up and having calls for him to leave his post, beeped to try and get some of the angry fans to move away.
Eventually a fellow Arsenal fan stepped in and ushered the angry crowd away from Arteta’s window allowing the Gunners boss to move on.
Meanwhile, Arsenal are dealing with a challenging situation with the squad hit by Covid-19 cases and injuries, manager Mikel Arteta said after they lost to Chelsea, their second defeat in as many games at the start of the Premier League season.
After a season-opening loss at newcomers Brentford, Arteta’s team were beaten 2-0 by London rivals Chelsea at home on Sunday.
It was the first time Arsenal lost their first two league games without scoring.
New signing Ben White missed Sunday’s game after the centre back became the latest player to test positive for Covid-19, while full back Hector Bellerin and midfielder Thomas Partey were ruled out with injuries.
Arsenal were handed another blow after left back Kieran Tierney and forward Gabriel Martinelli limped off in the second half.
“It’s really challenging at the moment. We are missing nine players and the majority of them are big senior players,” Arteta said. “We put out there a team that will probably be unprecedented in the history of this football club.
“But credit to the boys . . . They are playing with a lot of courage in this situation, which is tough. They are trying their best — and at the moment it’s not enough to win.”
Arsenal face another tough test when they travel to Premier League champions Manchester City on Saturday, but Arteta, who is under pressure after successive defeats, said the team cannot afford to feel dejected.
“I don’t want to see anybody feeling sorry for themselves or the squad or the team, because that’s not going to help us,” he said.
“I want a team and individuals that want to fight and want to face the challenge that is ahead of us, because normally when you do that, at some stage you get rewards.” — Reuters
Online Reporter