Gallas believes the Arsenal job came too soon for the Spanish coach, insisting Arteta was not an improvement over Unai Emery.
Arteta spent the previous three years at Manchester City as an assistant coach under Pep Guardiola, before he was drafted in to replace Emery after Arsenal’s poor start to the 2019/2020 season.
The former Everton midfielder guided Arsenal to FA Cup glory and finished eighth with the Gunners in the Premier League.
In his first full season at the club, Arteta also guided Arsenal to finish eighth on the Premier League table and the North Londoners will not be in any European competition for the first time in 25 years.
“Mikel Arteta was not ready yet to manage a club like Arsenal,” the former Arsenal defender told The Sun. “OK, he was an assistant coach at Manchester City. But he had never managed a team. It is completely different.”
“The board made a mistake picking him. I’m sure he will be a great manager but you need to have the experience to manage a big club. To be honest, it is a great shame for the Arsenal fans after finishing eighth.”
“Arsenal is not the same Arsenal we knew 18, 20 years ago. We had players who were strong, with strong personalities.”
