PIERS MORGAN was left flabbergasted by Mikel Arteta’s defence of his trophy haul at Arsenal.
Arteta has transformed his former club into bonafide title contenders since replacing Unai Emery at the Emirates helm in December 2019.
The north Londoners, however, only have one major trophy to show for all of their manager’s hard work – the 2019-20 FA Cup.
But the Gunners’ Spanish supremo insists he’s a THREE-TIME trophy winner.
When it was put to him that he’d only won one trophy, the 42-year-old replied: “And the charity shield as well, twice, no? So it’s three.”
Arteta’s comments quickly came to the attention of Arsenal superfan Morgan, who wrote on X: “Oh no… please tell me Arteta didn’t say that?”
Morgan’s followers were quick to react, with one saying: “Yes he did.”
Another said: “He didn’t lie though, did he?”
And another said: “That’s his idea of success.”
One remarked with a series of laughing emojis: “That great mentality – small club.”
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ARSENAL are stepping up plans to sign a world-class striker in the summer after their Champions League heartbreak.
Mikel Arteta splashed out £204.5m last summer on Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber.
But the Spanish manager accepts he needs a proven goalscorer to take the club to the next level.
And here are the players he is looking at to get the Gunners firing:
BENJAMIN SESKO (RB Leipzig, value £40m-£45m)
One for the future at 20 years old. Scored 16 goals for RB Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga last season and the Slovenian has carried on that good form in Germany with Leipzig this campaign.
VIKTOR GYOKERES (Sporting Lisbon, value £60m-£80m)
Been scouted several times this season. The Swedish striker, 25, is more of a traditional No 9 so may not suit Arsenal’s demand for flexibility but would bring a physicality that boss Mikel Arteta craves.
ALEXANDER ISAK (Newcastle, value £75m-£85m)
Impressed in his first two seasons in English football. The Swede, 24, has the pace and finesse to match his finishing ability, and Eddie Howe’s Toon may need to sell to balance the books this summer.
JOSHUA ZIRKZEE (Bologna, value £45m-£50m)
Dutch wonder is attracting the attentions of clubs across Europe. At 6ft 4in the 22-year-old forward would have no trouble adapting to the Premier League and already has an eye for goal.
XAVI SIMONS (RB Leipzig, value £70m-£80m)
An incredible talent in the Bukayo Saka mould, currently on loan from Paris Saint-Germain. The future of the Dutch attacker, 20, depends on how much money his parent club want to make from him.
Another chimed in: “Arteta is the new [Erik] Ten Hag. except Ten Hag won two real trophies in less time.”
Arteta’s troops could take a giant step towards their first major trophy in nearly five years tomorrow night in their Carabao Cup quarter-final clash with Crystal Palace.
He said of the cup run: “It is really helpful, it brings belief, trust, positive energy, touching the cup, and being in the semi-final and beating somebody in the final.
“It is that energy and it creates the right path to go and do something else, particularly because of the timing and when the competition is played in this country, it gets that momentum going.
“I fully believe in that, the fact that you are winning and you get into the next round and it creates something different around the team and that is why these kind of games are so important.
“It keeps everyone on their toes and everyone is willing to play those games and those competitions and if you can win it is momentum and belief and you are ready.
“The team is engaged every three days so to try to achieve that for the bigger ones.”
