Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville has slammed Arsene Wenger for Arsenal's long wait to win the English Premier League title.
Sky Sports pundit has branded Arsene Wenger 'arrogant' for refusing to buy the type of players he last won a league title with
Recommended articles
The England coach was speaking in his role as pundit during Arsenal's Monday night league game against .
Ahead of the goalless draw, Neville branded Wenger as 'naive and arrogant' for refusing to replace the players of his last title winning squad.
Neville opined that Wenger refusal to be active in the transfer window is the reason he had failed to win the league title since 2004.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I think it’s arrogance. I really do," Neville said on Sky Sports.
"To think that you are not going to adapt your team, to change to impact on the other teams that you’re playing against and their strengths.
"It is either naive or arrogance, because they keep losing this way. (If it is) belief, it is misheld belief."
Neville compared some of Arsenal's past players like Patrick Vieira and Emmanuel Petit with their present players.
"I just cannot get my head around why he would not sign players of power to assist these talented players that you’ve got to enable them to win the league," Wenger said.
ADVERTISEMENT
"You could make one mistake... But then you sign (Mikel) Arteta and you turn him into a midfield player.
"Rosicky signs, wide player, turn him into a midfield player. Ramsey plays midfield even though he is a wide midfield player.
"Cazorla now, this team here. It is a continual string of errors, it's a sustained period time.
"It is the one big, if you like, black mark against Arsene Wenger in these last 10 years of why he hasn’t identified an issue with these types of players because they cannot win the league with those types of players. It can’ t happen.
"I think they are good players, Cazorla is fantastic to watch. But I’m talking about Arsenal winning the league.
ADVERTISEMENT
'Think about a Cesc Fabregas or a Paul Scholes when we were playing, fantastic players.
"You’ve got to build people around him. Facilitate what maybe they can’t do. Mourinho puts (Nemanja) Matic or Ramires alongside him (Fabregas).
"We've talked about the likes of Vieira, Petit, Gilberto, Keown, Campbell, Adams, Bould, all strong people.
"All of a sudden the most significant signings between 2004-09; I can't think of a word to describe that bunch - I could but it wouldn't be usable on television.
"Certainly not what I would call what you want to win you a league."
ADVERTISEMENT
In response to Neville's criticism Wenger said: "Look, I don't know what that has to do with arrogance.
"You find all kind of attributes for me since I've been here. I try just to do my job well for 20 years. I leave judgement to everybody else, the assessment of the quality of my work.
"Everybody has his opinion and is entitled to that opinion. I could prove to you that it's not necessarily right, but let's not go into that debate tonight.
"When you don't win, you're wrong and people find reasons. Are they good reasons? I have enough experience to know when it's right and when it's wrong."
Watch this video of Arsenal, below:
