Tony Cascarino believes Mikel Arteta will be sacked if Arsenal do not finish in the Premier League's top four this coming season.
The Gunners were on course to finish fourth in the Premier League last term but defeats to Tottenham and Newcastle in their final three fixtures saw Spurs pip them to the post. Arsenal ended up in fifth and have a gruelling Europa League campaign ahead of them.
Arsenal supporters are desperate to finish above Tottenham and qualify for the Champions League over the next 10 months. The Gunners haven't achieved that since they finished second behind unexpected Premier League champions Leicester six years ago.
Arteta signed a new three-year deal at the Emirates in May, yet Cascarino thinks he won't fulfil that contract if Arsenal don't break into the top four. The ex-striker also believes the other five managers of the so-called "Big Six" are in danger of losing their jobs.
Those are Manchester City's Pep Guardiola, Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp, Manchester United's Erik ten Hag, Chelsea's Thomas Tuchel and Tottenham's Antonio Conte. "If you look at the top six, the two that don’t get in the top four this season their managers will lose their jobs, without a doubt," Cascarino told talkSPORT on Saturday morning.
"If Arsenal don’t make it, Arteta will lose his job. I think he’s done everything he can to make his team as competitive as possible, but you now have to make the top four.
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"Unless they only narrowly miss out... but it would have to be the smallest margins or a dramatic end [to save him]. Performances week-in, week-out will also count, because that will affect the feeling at the club.
"I went to a couple of games at the Emirates at the end of the season, and it was rocking. People called it a library, but it was rocking at the end of the season. But if they don’t make the top four Arteta will be gone - that’s what happens."
Arteta was appointed by Arsenal in December 2019 - his first job in management - and has since won the FA Cup and Community Shield. He was named the Premier League's Manager of the Month twice last season and praised for improving the team.
The Gunners have struggled since Arsene Wenger's messy departure in May 2018 after he was hounded out of his job a vocal section of supporters. They've subsequently finished fifth, eighth, eighth and fifth in the Premier League, lowering expectations.
Arsenal will be confident of breaking into the top four as Arteta has been backed in the transfer market. The Gunners have already spent more than £100million this summer to sign Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Matt Turner, Marquinhos and Fabio Vieira.
Arsenal are also among the favourites to lift the Europa League, which awards Champions League football to the winning club. Man Utd and Jose Mourinho's Roma, who won the Europa Conference League last term, are also among the pre-tournament frontrunners.
