Former Arsenal defender and BT Sport pundit Martin Keown doesn't think Mikel Arteta currently has enough experience in his side, which could hold the team back if it's not improved this summer.
After praising the Hale End model and the success of its products in recent seasons, Keown voiced his concerns about the lack of senior heads within the squad.
"I don’t believe there is a balance at the moment," he said. "I think that is the problem and Arsene Wenger told us that if you do not have 26/27 year-olds as an average age, you are never going to win things. Arsenal have been the youngest team in the Premier League this season but I think (Mohamed) Elneny coming in in midweek to give that experience and (Granit) Xhaka also, you have got to have that protection."
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Xhaka and Elneny proved to be calm and collective figures in a thrilling 4-2 win at Stamford Bridge during the week, which undoubtedly helped the Gunners get over the line. They also followed it up with another impressive performance in Arsenal's 3-1 victory over Manchester United on Saturday.
Despite Keown's claim, fellow BT Sport pundit Rio Ferdinand disagreed with his point and reiterated the need to back Mikel Arteta's ongoing project.
"I understand when you say that you need more older players to be able to bring the players on, but it is a process for Mikel Arteta and the guys behind the scenes. This is about the culture," he said.
This is not the first time questions have been asked about Arsenal's lack of experienced options, with Jamie Carragher recently leaning more towards Keown's opinion.
"There’s definitely the quality there but I think Arsenal fans are probably going to have to accept when you have a young team like this, at times when they are sort of growing and trying to get to that level that Arsenal fans want them to get to where their challenging for titles and not top-four, they are going to have bumps in the road - that's why they still need experienced players to become sort of the leaders in this team," Carragher said following the defeat to Crystal Palace earlier this month.
Arteta and technical director Edu oversaw a busy summer transfer window last year, with £150m being spent on six new signings, all of whom were aged 23 or younger.
