‘A disaster performance’ - Arsenal star blasts team-mates after Newcastle United defeat

Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka has blasted his side after their Champions League hopes were all but ended by a dismal performance at Newcastle United.

The Gunners will head into their final day home game against Everton with a two-goal deficit to North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, who currently occupy the fourth and final Champions League spot.

Mikel Arteta’s side ventured to the North East looking to bounce back from their defeat at Spurs on Thursday - but a Ben White own-goal and a late strike from Bruno Guimaraes left the Gunners playing catchup as the season’s finale approaches.

Swiss international Xhaka called the defeat a ‘disaster performance’ and believes some of his team-mates did not listen to instructions given to them by Arteta.

He told Sky Sports: “It’s so difficult to find the right words after the game.

“We came here to show a different game but from the first minute until the 90 minutes, we didn’t deserve to be on the pitch today.

“I can’t explain to you why.

“We didn’t do what the game-plan was, not listening to the coach, doing our own things and when you do your own things, these things happen.

“It was a disaster performance and you don’t deserve to play Champions League, you don’t even deserve to play Europa League.

“It’s very hard to take but I don’t know why we don’t say what the coach says.”

“I feel very sorry for the Arsenal supporters”

Xhaka was pressed on whether a youthful looking Arsenal side were unable to cope with a high-intensity display from their hosts at St James Park.

However, the former Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder refuted those claims and issued an apology to an impressive band of travelling support that made the long journey to Newcastle.

He said: “It doesn’t matter, the age, you can be 30, you can be 35, you can be 18, if you aren’t ready for that, if you are nervous, stay on the bench.

“Stay at home, don’t come here, we need people to have the balls to come here and to play because we knew this game was one of the most important games for us.

“With a performance like this is not acceptable.

“I am very, very, very sad for us.  I am very, very, very disappointed for us and I feel very sorry for the people that came here to support us.

“I feel very sorry for the Arsenal supporters but this is not the way we wanted to go and this is the only thing I can say.”