‘Real progress’ – Arsenal legend defends Arteta following defeat to Liverpool | OneFootball

Arsenal legend Nigel Winterburn has backed Mikel Arteta to deliver long-awaited success at the Emirates, insisting the Spaniard has built a squad capable of challenging for the biggest prizes – if they can channel the same belief that carried George Graham’s side to the famous Anfield triumph in 1989.

Winterburn, who made 584 appearances for the Gunners and won three league titles across 13 years in north London, believes the criticism of Arteta following Arsenal’s recent near misses is premature and unfair.

He is particularly confused by the reaction to their defeat at Liverpool last time out and only three games into the new season.

“Listen, it’s way too early to judge,” Winterburn said. “We’ve brought in big players, there’s been a lot of change, and people want to analyse every little thing, even warm-ups, let alone matches. But I still think Arteta’s doing a good job. Six years ago, I’d go to the stadium wondering if we’d scrape into the top four. Now, with this team, we expect it. That’s real progress.”

Signs of progress

Arsenal fell to a late defeat against Liverpool thanks to a superb free-kick, despite controlling large spells of the match. Winterburn believes that while the result was frustrating, the performance showed the team’s maturity.

“It looked all over as a nil-nil,” he explained. “Most people would have gone away saying, ‘two top teams, very cagey’. But because we lost, suddenly it’s all about whether Arteta got his tactics wrong. I find that quite amusing .We’re not coaches, we don’t see training every day. To me, it’s about building consistency and belief. That will come.”

Winterburn pointed to Liverpool’s knack of grinding out results as an example of the mentality Arsenal must develop. “Did they deserve to beat Newcastle? Maybe not. Did they deserve to beat Arsenal? Probably not. But they did. That’s what champions do. They’ve got that belief that at some stage they will win the game. That’s the level we need to reach.”

Lessons from Anfield ’89

Winterburn knows better than most what it takes to get over the line in a title race. He was part of the Arsenal side that famously won the First Division with Michael Thomas’s last-gasp winner at Anfield in 1989, a night etched in football folklore.

“We should have won the league a couple of games before, but George Graham was confident and the players believed,” he recalled, speaking on behalf of Betting Apps India. “When Thomas went through one-on-one at the end, I was already off celebrating because I knew he’d score. That shows the belief we had in each other.

“It’s not arrogance, it’s professionalism and confidence. You walk out on the pitch thinking: ‘these lot aren’t going to beat us’. That’s an unbelievable feeling. Once Arsenal’s current players get that, they’ll be unstoppable.”

Trophies will breed belief

While Arteta steered the club to FA Cup glory in 2020, Arsenal have not lifted the league title since 2004, Winterburn believes winning any piece of silverware this season could provide the spark needed to push the club to greater heights under the Spanish coach.

“Any time you win, it’s a success,” he said. “Trophies set the history of the football club. Arteta won the FA Cup when he came in, but now with a completely new squad, winning something again is huge. People might say, ‘it’s only the League Cup’ or ‘only the FA Cup’, but that’s not true. It’s a driving point. It builds belief.

“Eventually, if you keep knocking on the door, you open it and close it behind you. This Arsenal team have the squad, the manager, and the momentum. Now they just need to go out and do it.”

For Winterburn, the message is simple: ignore the noise, trust the process, and believe. Arteta, he insists, is the right man to lead Arsenal back to the promised land.