Arsenal are still in contention for the Premier League title, but Manchester City have the advantage heading into the final few games of the season.
Mikel Arteta’s side have been outstanding in 2024, with just one league defeat, but this home loss to Aston Villa handed Man City the initiative in the title race.
Arsenal also suffered a Champions League exit at the hands of Bayern Munich, with their Champions League inexperience showing in a 1-0 defeat at the Allianz Arena.
Former Arsenal goalkeeper and Invincible Jens Lehmann, has now criticised Arteta’s side, and made a comparison to his team which last won the title at the club in 2004.
Jens Lehmann slams Arsenal speed in build-up play under Mikel Arteta
Speaking via The Daily Mail, Lehmann highlighted the speed with which Arsenal build up play, and bemoaned the extra caution they take with their passing compared to the Invincibles.
“They’re very different to us (Invincibles) in their approach – much more cautious and slower with the ball,” he stated.
“Physically, they run a lot more and have more high-intensity runs but they don’t play faster than us because we were a one-touch team.
“They all take three, four touches at a time. And if you’re too cautious in football, you can’t win trophies. Most of the time, the bravest teams win the league. I would love them to win the title but that has cost them in certain games.
“It’s 20 years since we won the league and I hope Arsenal win but it’s not in their own hands anymore and that’s a weakness.”
Are Arsenal too cautious in their attacking play?
Arsenal have scored the most goals in the Premier League this season, meaning any criticism of the attack may be surprising, but Lehmann does raise a good point.
Arteta’s side failed to score in four Premier League games, and if they fall just short of the title, this is what they will point to as the area in which they can improve.
The defeat to Bayern also saw Arsenal deliver a flat performance in Munich, where they hardly threatened once going 1-0 down.
Arteta’s rigid system has built the best defence in the league, and also facilitates goals from all over the pitch, but they arguably do lack dynamism and speed in attack, and given that Arteta is seemingly keen on a winger who can add deadly pace to the side, he may actually agree with Lehmann that there is a lack of ingenuity to create when struggling to break a team down.