Mikel Arteta blamed for Arsenal defeat v Lens as Rio Ferdinand makes ‘look a bit different’ claim

Arsenal were dealt a setback on Tuesday night when they suffered their first Champions League defeat of the season. The Gunners were heavy favourites heading to France, but Lens stunned their English visitors to take maximum points and to bust the group wide open.

There is little time for Arsenal to lick their wounds, however, with an early season-defining clash this weekend against Premier League leaders and reigning champions Manchester City. In the meantime, we have rounded up all the latest news and transfer rumours surrounding the Emirates Stadium.

Arteta criticism

TalkSPORT pundit Jason Cundy has called out Arteta for his decision to risk Bukayo Saka on Tuesday night, with the winger picking up a concerning muscular injury during the trip to France.

“I have to say from what I did see Lens looked good. I heard a couple of Arsenal fans on drive talking about [Bukayo] Saka, that maybe Saka doesn’t have to play, we should be dealing with this,” Cundy said on TalkSPORT. “And I thought in all honestly that they perhaps would deal with them quite comfortably. I couldn’t tell you much about Lens, but maybe they underestimated Lens a little bit.

“He got injured at the weekend, he was hobbling around for longer than he should. Now, he’s paid the price, they’ve got City coming up. And you think about that without Saka, a bad night for the English clubs.”

Odegaard praise

Rio Ferdinand has been waxing lyrical over Gunners midfielder Martin Odegaard.

He said on TNT Sports: “I love him. I like the way he plays. He’s an artist the way he plays off the left foot as well. Left footers always just look a bit different.

“There’s pressure in that as well, being the captain. That’s why I questioned Odegaard. Has he got the personality? Will he be able to deal with all of the pressure that comes with being the captain of a big club like Arsenal? So young as well. But you have to say, since the armband went on him, I think he’s got bigger.”