Arsenal legend Tony Adams has offered some defence to embattled star Mesut Ozil and says that the club's board should carry much of the blame for their poor state.
The Emirates Stadium outfit lie sixth in the Premier League standings, eight points shy of the top four and a potential return to the Champions League.
Their latest setback came on Saturday, when they were defeated 2-0 away to in-form Leicester City, taking the club’s winless streak to five.
“We went to Leicester expecting a good hiding and we got one. It’s infectious once you’ve got that mentality,” Adams told Sky Sports .
“The recruitment has been poor for a few years now. The manager must be pulling his hair out. I think it’s easy to blame [Unai] Emery. He’s doing his best with what he’s got. It’s a bigger problem than this coach, it really is.”
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Ozil, meanwhile, has been a source of hot debate with the north London side, with some fans of the belief that the German, who has been reduced to a bit-part role this season, should be a regular starter.
“He should be the cherry on the cake – but Arsenal haven’t got a cake!” Adams lamented on a man who made just a third league appearance of the season at the weekend.
Adams does not feel that Emery is currently exploiting the quality of the players he has to the fullest extent, however.
“It’s no good when you keep changing the defence, there’s no consistency,” he continued.
“If you haven’t got the technical ability to play out even if you haven’t you can push up to the halfway line and then drop off again and get the ball but you can’t keep turning it over.
“It’s inevitable, if you keep turning it over you’re inviting pressure. It’s very worrying. Just push them out from the back and play in their half for a while."
The international break offers some respite for Emery and his side before they begin the run up to the Christmas period with a home game against Southampton and a trip to Norwich, sandwiched by a Europa League home encounter against Eintracht Frankfurt.