Former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong has thrown his weight behind manager Mikel Arteta, saying he isn't to blame for the club's woes.

Prior to the Boxing Day clash with Chelsea, Arsenal had gone seven matches without a win in the Premier League.

The Gunners however pulled one of the most shocking results of the campaign against their London rivals after inflicting a 3-1 defeat on them at the Emirates Stadium.

According to Frimpong, who retired from football in March 2019 after a series of injuries, Arteta is not the cause of the side’s slide.

"I don't think the problem is Arteta, it's the players and the investment the club has made in the players. When you look at the Arsenal squad, it's not the best of squads,” the ex-Ghanaian midfielder told Playojo.

"Of course, we are all thinking Arsenal should be in the top four, based on the history of the club. The fact of the matter is Arsenal is not a top four team at the moment, with the players we have, the structures in place, the club's investments just haven't been good enough.”

"Sometimes they do pay a lot of money for players but unfortunately when they join, they do not perform. For example, players like Pepe and Xhaka haven't performed to the standard that we thought they would.”

"I'm not happy with the way the club is being run, but at the same time they have put money into the club, it's just that the players that they've been bringing in haven't worked.”

"I do believe in Mikel, he doesn't have the experience but given the right platform, and the right players, he can push Arsenal to the next level."