Jamie Carragher: Arsenal title hopes hurt by Mikel Arteta 'morphing into Jose Mourinho'

The Gunners hosted Liverpool connected Sunday needing to triumph to support gait with champions Manchester City and led 2-1 astatine half-time successful a immense crippled successful the rubric race.

However, Arsenal retreated successful the 2nd fractional and were penalised for time-wasting, which gave Liverpool the accidental to people a invaluable equaliser arsenic the crippled finished successful a 2-2 draw. Arteta admitted aft the crippled that his players needed to amusement much "courage" to spot retired the result.

Not for the archetypal clip this play Arsenal dropped points erstwhile leading, having besides conceded equalisers against City and Brighton aft being shown reddish cards, and past week went down 2-0 astatine Bournemouth.

Carragher believes Arteta, and his instructions for players to discarded clip during games is consecutive retired of the "Jose Mourinho playbook", and the Gunners would beryllium amended served with a little risk-averse tactical plan.

"I’ve been reasoning astir this for a agelong time, astir apt going backmost to this fixture past year," Carragher said connected Sky Sports.

"Because Mikel Arteta worked with Pep we each deliberation helium is simply a Pep Guardiola disciple. If you look astatine the 2 astir palmy managers successful the past 10-15 years you’ve got Pep connected 1 extremity and Jose – astir arsenic palmy – astatine the different end.

"Mikel Arteta is dilatory morphing into a Jose Mourinho benignant of manager and nary 1 truly thought that would happen. They were 2-1 up, pressing Liverpool, connected apical and playing truly good but they retreated successful the 2nd half.

This thought that Arsenal play large shot and helium is simply a Pep Guardiola man? He is not

Jamie Carragher connected Mikel Arteta

"I cognize they had a mates of injuries astatine the backmost but they inactive got the midfield players and immoderate attackers who you deliberation you tin get connected the shot and spell guardant and effort and instrumentality the sting retired of the unit you’re under. But that instinct to support comes from the manager but it happens excessively often.

"I get what happened astatine City – I thought what they did was superb – but what they did present astatine Brighton, what they did against Bournemouth – the apical teams erstwhile they spell down to 10 men, yeah, you are nether unit but you relieve it; you support the shot a spot much and you’re inactive a menace going forward.

"It feels similar what Jose was similar astatine the Nou Camp with Inter [in the 2010 Champions League]. This is not a criticism, this is an observation.

"But this thought that Arsenal play large shot and helium is simply a Pep Guardiola man, helium is not. Just look astatine the players going down today, the secrecy earlier the crippled astir who was acceptable and who wasn’t. It’s each retired of the Jose Mourinho playbook."