“Arsenal are the most scary team to face in Premier League…They might win every trophy this season”: Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola gives two reasons Arsenal might win every trophy this season

Arsenal look like they’ve “almost gone back 20 years” in terms of their style of play, according to Paul Scholes.

The Gunners were in Premier League action against Manchester City on Sunday, with both sides playing out a 1-1 draw.

Erling Haaland opened the scoring for Man City, but Gabriel Martinelli equalised late on to secure a point for Arsenal.

Some fans and pundits – such as Gary Neville and Theo Walcott – accused Arteta of being too cautious in the game.

And Paul Scholes went even further in his criticism.

Paul Scholes reckons Mikel Arteta has succumbed to ‘English mentality’
Scholes, speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, claimed that Arsenal were playing like a team from 20 years ago.

The Manchester United legend also suggested that Arteta and Pep Guardiola have both succumbed to the “English mentality”, namely that of safety first.

Scholes suggested both managers served up “the worst style of football” available, but they “get away with it” somewhat due to them being foreign managers.

“Well, it is, but again, he’s probably (doing) the same thing as well.

“He’s been here 10 years. We’ve almost turned him into an English coach watching yesterday [Sunday]. Do you know what I mean?

“If there had been two English coaches, we’d have been saying, ‘Worst coaches ever. The worst style of football we’ve ever seen.’

“But because it was them two [Arteta and Pep], they get away with it a little bit, don’t they?”

What Mikel Arteta has said in response to criticism

Arteta, speaking ahead of Arsenal’s Carabao Cup trip to Port Vale, hit back at critics calling him overly cautious in big games.

The Gunners did not have a shot for 31 minutes, and their first effort on target came in first-half stoppage time.

However, Arsenal also limited City to just 33.2 per cent possession – the lowest from a Guardiola team in his entire managerial top-flight career.

Arteta said he “would be extremely surprised” by criticism about his team.

“With my knowledge, know-how and how I analyse a football game, it was impossible for me to predict such a dominance from Arsenal for 96 minutes,” said Arteta.

“It has never happened in 17 years of Pep as a manager.

“How can you be dominant against such a team with a handbrake? Dominance and handbrake – they are two different words. But I accept everything.

“I was just surprised by it. When I saw everything and watching it back with all the stats, I was surprised.

“I respect everyone’s opinion. If I can see and learn something that I haven’t seen, more than happy to do so. That’s never an issue.”