Redknapp: Arsenal’s big stars are letting the club and Wenger down

Arsene Wenger: Arsenal players lacked fight

Jamie Redknapp and Thierry Henry did not hold back in their criticism of Arsenal after their abject 3-1 defeat at West Brom on Saturday.

The Gunners were undone by two Craig Dawson headers and a scrappy Hal Robson-Kanu goal – and you can read our match analysis on their defending here.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Redknapp said he felt sorry for the Arsenal fans who had travelled up to The Hawthorns.

“They were a shambles,” he said. “This is as bad a performance I’ve seen from Arsenal, or any side, defensively, in the top six.

“That’s the sort of performance that gets managers the sack.

“Surely somebody has told them before the game you need to be very careful, McAuley, Dawson, they are monsters at set-pieces. You need leaders in the dressing room, somebody has to be organising, but it was a parting of the ways.

“I have not seen such shambolic defending. I feel so sorry for those Arsenal fans that have come up in their droves. I thought there would be a performance but that was diabolical.

“Arsene Wenger has taken a lot of stick, I hope he’s in that dressing room telling those players exactly what he thinks of them because they have let him down and let the club down.

“How much do the players care? Not a lot on this evidence. And how much do they want Arsene Wenger to stay? There was no fight, no willing. Their leaders went missing. You need more from their star names.”

Pushed further on their defensive display, Redknapp continued: “That was absolutely abject. If you put the ball into the box, the message from Arsenal is very clear: we’re going to let you score from it. It’s simply not good enough.

“If they carry on as they are, they’re going to drift out of the top six, let alone Champions League contention. The FA Cup as well….[could be gone].”

Former Arsenal striker Henry was equally as critical, saying: “It is not enough to have 77 per cent possession and you don’t do anything with it. You play against a team with 23 per cent of the ball and they create more chances, have more shots on target. What is that possession supposed to say?

“You have to do something with it and they had nowhere near the desire, commitment and attitude required to win a game in the Premier League.

“We can talk about whether Arsene Wenger or Alexis Sanchez will stay, let’s talk about West Brom. You have to win at West Brom and they couldn’t do it. Especially the way they lost, it was all about attitude.”

 

Opta stats

Hal Robson-Kanu: Scores West Brom's second

Arsenal have lost four out of five Premier League games for the first time in since April 1995.

West Brom have scored a league-high 14 Premier League goals from corners this season.

Craig Dawson has scored three goals in his last four Premier League appearances, as many as in his previous 55.

Alexis Sanchez has been involved in 27 PL goals this season (18 goals, nine assists) – more than any other player in the competition.

Overall, Sanchez has now been involved in 100 goals for the Gunners in all competitions, scoring 64 and assisting 36.

There were just two minutes and 45 seconds between the first two goals in this game.

Hal Robson-Kanu scored with his second touch of the game, just 75 seconds after coming off the bench.