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Arsenal extended their winning streak across all competitions to double figures on Tuesday evening – yet that hasn't prevented Mikel Arteta from facing calls to cease his micromanaging approach.
Arsenal secured a commanding 3-0 triumph over Slavia Prague in the Champions League at Prague's Fortuna Arena. Bukayo Saka broke the deadlock with a first-half spot-kick before Mikel Merino struck twice to seal the victory.
The result marked their fourth consecutive Champions League win this campaign and their tenth straight triumph across all competitions. Saturday's 2-0 success at Burnley also represented their fifth successive Premier League victory, establishing a six-point cushion at the summit. It comes as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain made a "special" Liverpool claim with a comparison to his time at Arsenal.
The North London outfit has now emerged as overwhelming title favorites this term, having claimed runners-up spots in each of the previous three seasons.
However, former Liverpool midfielder Jason McAteer maintains that Arteta remains culpable of excessive micromanagement and has urged him to grant his squad freedom to express themselves.
Speaking to football.london, via Casino.org Ireland, he commented: "As for Arsenal, I think they bought really, really well. I think Arteta has got to stop micromanaging.
"I think he's a fantastic manager. I think what he's done over the last three or four seasons has been brilliant. It's a funny sport. It's like you can be at the top of your game, and then you get a (Roger) Federer that comes along and just wins everything. It doesn't mean that you're bad.
"It just means that they are like one in a million, and it happened to Arsenal. It happened to Liverpool; it was City.
"It happened to Arsenal because of City and then because of Liverpool. But I think right now, I think the team he's built is the strongest.
"I think it's the most equipped. I think he's got to stop micromanaging, and he's got to start believing in his tools."
With Arsenal set to travel to Sunderland on Saturday – as Liverpool makes the journey to Manchester City on Sunday – McAteer argued: "It feels like he's holding them back a little bit. He's a little bit too pragmatic. He's got to believe in (Eberechi) Eze. You've got to believe in (Martin) Odegaard.
"He's got to believe in all that creative talent and go and win football matches with it instead of going, I'm going to defend.
"I'm going to get a nil-nil, and then I'm going to nick it because I can throw Eze on. I can throw on (Leandro) Trossard, I can throw on so-and-so, and so on. I know Odegaard is on; I've got (Bukayo) Saka.
"I can throw (Noni) Madueke on. Just pick the team to win the game by two or three or four and go and win it by two or three or four. Go and do it, and stop micromanaging everything."
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