“I don’t believe this is helping the cause” - Graeme Souness criticises Mikel Arteta for going ‘overboard’ during Arsenal games

Liverpool legend Graeme Souness has criticized Gunners boss Mikel Arteta for his frantic behavior on the sidelines during Arsenal games.

The Spanish manager has been seen verbally and physically expressing his frustration on multiple occasions this season. Arteta can get very emotional on the side of the pitch during his side's encounters.

The 40-year-old manager was recently involved in an altercation with Kevin De Bruyne during Arsenal's 3-1 loss to Manchester City on February 15.

Souness believes this hot-headed behavior is of no help to Arteta's team. The Scottish pundit wrote in his column for the Daily Mail (via HITC):

“Arteta has gone overboard because this is all new to him. As a player, he bordered on being son-in-law material – you wouldn’t be unhappy if you walked through the door with your daughter – and I can never remember him aggressively going after anyone. Yet he’s now turning up on a matchday with an angry head on. I don’t believe this is helping the cause.”

The Gunners are enjoying one of their best seasons in the Premier League since their triumphant and unbeaten 2003/04 campaign. They were the overwhelming favorites for the title, leading the table for the majority of the season until their loss to City.

The North London outfit's defeat by the English champions saw them drop down to second place.

While having dropped points recently, the title race is still in Arsenal's hands and their recent 4-2 win over Aston Villa will give them immense confidence. It remains to be seen who will come out on top at the end of the season.

"Three fatal points to concede" - Graeme Souness on Arsenal's loss to Manchester City

Manchester City defeated Arsenal in an important Premier League fixture at the Emirates as Jack Grealish, Kevin De Bruyne, and Erling Haaland got on the scoresheet for the visitors.

Bukayo Saka converted a penalty for the Gunners in the first half, but to no avail for his side.

Souness believes the Gunners' loss to their biggest rivals in the title race could be the beginning of the end of their title challenge.

The Scot wrote in the aforementioned Daily Mail column:

"There's no way of dressing up the gravity of Arsenal's defeat to Manchester City this week. I felt that match was an opportunity for them to plant a seed of doubt in the heads of Manchester City's players and make a big psychological gain. But they were unable to do that. Those were three fatal points to concede and I will be surprised if they can recover and win the title race."

He added:

"I really hope that I'm wrong because during my time in football, Arsenal have been the benchmark of how a football club ought to be run. We need a competitive title race and the beauty of this sport of ours lie in its endless capacity to surprise us."