"There's an element of experimentation" - Gary Neville urges Arsenal to make tactical tweak after 2-2 draw against 10-man Fulham

Gary Neville has urged Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta to stop experimenting with his squad. He believes that the Gunners should return to the basics, starting from their next match against Manchester United.

Arsenal have signed Kai Havertz from Chelsea this summer, but the German has not managed to hit the ground running. Arteta has also played Thomas Partey at right-back while Ben White has been used as the center-back ahead of Gabriel Magalhaes.

Speaking on Sky Sports podcast, Neville claimed that Arsenal did well in the Premier League title race last season. But he believes the manager has changed things around to accommodate Havertz, and it has disrupted his system. He said:

"I think they're at different stages. Arsenal are expected to challenge for the league with the business they have done. There's a lot of pressure on Kai Havertz but give the lad a chance and let him settle into the team. I would say that for me, looking at Arsenal, there is an element of experimentation, and this expectation that full-backs think they can play midfield and midfielders think they can play at full-back."

He added:

"Thomas Partey is playing half-and-half in a game, and sometimes there is an element that you need to go back to basics. I would expect next week that Arteta is going to end that experiment and probably go with a solid back four with four defenders. He will maybe move Partey into midfield along with [Declan] Rice and Martin Odegaard, to get back to something which resembles what a team should look like."

Neville continued:

"Balancing a team is very important. Innovation is fantastic, we love seeing new things, but sometimes something that started as a good idea evolves into something that, to be fair, just doesn't work."

The Gunners have edged out wins over Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace this season. They were close to getting a win over Fulham, but 10-man Cottagers managed to salvage a draw.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta left frustrated with draw against Fulham

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has admitted that he was frustrated with the draw against Fulham. He stated that they made mistakes, starting from the first minute, but was happy with the team's reaction after going down.

The Gunners were 1-0 down in the first minute after a Bukayo Saka backpass put Andreas Pereira through on goal, who scored past Aaron Ramsdale as the goalkeeper tried to get back in goal.

Arteta added that they should have scored more after going 2-1 up but ended up paying the price for not being clinical. Joao Palhinha scored from a corner and sealed a draw for Fulham in the final minutes of the game.