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Piers Morgan has hit out Mikel Arteta over his 'refusal' to sign a top striker after watching Arsenal's title hopes go up in smoke at the weekend.
The Gunners dropped precious points in the title race after failing to beat West Ham at home on Saturday afternoon.
when Liverpool took advantage of their slip-up to move 11 points clear at the Premier League summit by beating Manchester City.
Several Arsenal fans and pundits have expressed their frustration at the club's failure to sign a new striker in January after Gabriel Jesus was ruled out for the season.
And with the club now looking likely to miss out on the title for a third successive year, Morgan has blamed Arsenal's regression this season on Arteta after he decided against signing a new forward.
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“Dear ?Mikel Arteta… we’re now going backwards under your tenure because of your bizarre refusal to sign a world class striker,” he wrote in a scathing post on X which included pictures of a host of Arsenal's top strikers from recent seasons.
“To help focus your mind, we need one with the calibre of these guys below!
So, for God’s sake stop being so damn stubborn and get us one.”
Arsenal are expected to sign a new striker after keeping their powder dry in January, where it was established that it would not be possible to land their top targets, such as Benjamin Sesko.
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But disaster struck just days after the transfer window ended as Kai Havertz - the club's last remaining recognised senior striker - suffered a season-ending hamstring injury.
Mikel Merino scored twice after playing as an emergency striker last week against Leicester, but the Spaniard and his team-mates were unable to follow that up against West Ham in a match that could prove decisive in the title race.
A devastated Arteta took responsibility for the result post-match, saying: “The moment we got into the areas, then you have to unlock something, and we didn't.
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