Former Arsenal striker Paul Merson has branded the Gunners "tactically clueless", after the club surrendered a three-goal lead to draw 3-3 at home against Anderlecht in the Champions League on Tuesday.
The north London outfit seemed to have sealed their passage to the Round of 16 yet again, when goals from Mikel Arteta, Alexis Sanchez and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain put them 3-0 up against the Belgian champions with half-an-hour remaining on the clock.
However, Arsene Wenger's side came down crashing like a house of cards soon after, as Anderlecht defender Anthony Vanden Borre struck twice - putting the hosts under immense pressure - before substitute Aleksandar Mitrovic found an injury time equaliser.
Merson has slammed Arsenal for being tactically weak, trying all-out attack with a 3-0 lead and not seeing of the match instead - like a team managed by Jose Mourinho would do.
"If I'm being honest I think they're tactically clueless. How you can be 3-0 up and attacking? This is not the first time, this happens a lot of times. It is absolutely clueless. For me the manager's got to get a message on [to the players]. You're playing with international footballers, these are not little kids. These have played for their countries lots of times," Merson pointed out.
"They've played in World Cups, they've played a lot of Premier League games. They're all bombing forward. If you know football you say 'right, let's stop here. Let's have two banks of four, let's leave two up front and we'll go from there. Let them break us down. I bet you Jose Mourinho hasn't drawn too many games from being 3-0 up. That tells you everything."
Arsenal are still favourites to reach the Round of 16 as they currently remain second in Group D, five points clear of the third-placed Anderlecht, with just two gameweeks to go. Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund continue to lead the table and are now five points ahead of the Gunners.
