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Arsenal's top-four hopes mathematically ended on Sunday evening after the Gunners failed to secure a win against Brighton at the Emirates and had to settle for a 1-1 draw.
The disappointment was very well shadowed by the farewell to Aaron Ramsey, Petr Cech and Danny Welbeck. Ramsey will join Juventus once his contract ends this summer, while Cech has announced retirement from world football, this being his last season. Welbeck was a surprise exit announcement as the club announced the decision about the English striker just a few hours before the Brighton game.
Talking about the current season, even if the event at Emirates would have ended on a bittersweet note, Arsenal and Unai Emery are facing serious problems in their squad, with the club missing on a top 4 finish.
For Arsenal to enjoy Champions League football next season, they have to win the Europa League. Right now, they hold a 3-1 advantage over Valencia after the first leg of their semifinal.
It has been a very poor performance by almost every Arsenal player this season, but we have picked out the top 3 players who have majorly flopped this season for the Londoners, leading to a finish out of the top 4. So, without much ado, let's head straight to our third pick!
#3 Mesut Ozil
Mesut Ozil's downfall probably started way before the season started when he was part of the German World Cup squad who bowed out of the tournament in just the group stages despite being the World Champions in 2014.
Ozil was one of the few players who were heavily criticized by not only the German fans, but also football fans worldwide. In the wake of the same, the Arsenal playmaker announced his International retirement.
With his permanent residence now being London, the best Ozil could do to at least win a few fans in the footballing fraternity, was by performing for Arsenal this season. But alas, he failed to deliver.
Ozil has been ineffective this season in almost every area he is known for due to his playing style.
Starting with his assists which probably added roughly around 10-15 goals for the Gunners for the past 3 years, the German has just 2 assists in 24 Premier League games. Ozil has surpassed his goal tally of 4 goals by scoring 5 this season, though.
As it is almost the end of the season, Ozil's key passes is another statistic the German would not be very excited to hear about. In the 2016-17 season, he played 100 key passes, whereas last season, he played 84. This season as we head into the last game of the season, he has played only 45 key passes, which is absolutely non value adding to the squad Unai Emery wants to develop.
Arsenal are going to find it difficult to replace Ozil, but if he continues this run in the next season too, it will be better if some other players get the opportunity to perform.
#2 Stephan Lichtsteiner
Even if Arsenal fans would defend this decision to their deaths, there is no doubt Stephan Lichtsteiner has been a panic buy for Arsenal.
The Swiss right back was often used by Unai Emery in positions which he did not naturally play. Due to absence of Nacho Monreal for long terms due to injury, Lichtsteiner was the scape goat who was deployed in every area of the back four depending upon the availability of other Arsenal defenders.
These decisions by Emery have backfired, as Lichtsteiner has not been among the best playing in the Arsenal shirt this season. Arsenal have conceded 24 goals in the 13 Premier League matches when Lichtsteiner has been involved this season.
The Swiss International's responsibility upon joining the club was to give stability to the back four and help Arsenal cope with the long term absence of Laurent Koscielny and the retirement of Per Mertesacker.
The 35-year-old has a lot of experience on his side, and was expected to utilize it on the field, which he has failed to do so, creating some defensive major problems on the flanks for Arsenal.
#1 Shkodran Mustafi
Per Mertesacker probably had the best time of his career at Arsenal, and when he retired last season, his fellow countryman, Shkodran Mustafi, was expected to take the baton from him in the central defence for Arsenal.
But Mustafi has been extremely shaky in the centre back position this season, and it was only until Laurent Koscielny returned from injury that Arsenal's back four were little stable.
Though statistically, Mustafi has been a good player this season, but what statistics don't reveal is the fact that Mustafi's on-field decisions have led to Arsenal facing serious troubles on a lot of weekends, which ultimately saw Arsenal out of the top 4.
Also, the German defender has not been very disciplined, having accumulated 9 yellow cards this season in the Premier League.
Though Mustafi is still capable of being a huge part of Arsenal's future, he is nowhere near the impact that Virgil van Dijk, David Luiz and Vincent Kompany bring to their respective squads.
If Arsenal want to really challenge for the title in the coming years, Mustafi needs to be demoted to a squad rotation player, and a serious centre back bid needs to be roped in this summer.
