Arsenal midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has moved to the defence of under-fire manager Arsene Wenger, claiming that the players must 'stand up and take the blame'.
The Gunners have failed to find any sort of consistency in the Premier League so far this season, culminating in a 3-2 defeat at the Britannia Stadium a fortnight ago which led to Wenger be abused by a section of his own supporters.
Since then Arsenal have recorded back-to-back 4-1 victories to get their campaign back on track, although some remain disappointed with the club 13 points adrift of leaders Chelsea in the league table.
Speaking to the London Evening Standard, Oxlade-Chamberlain said: "It's a hard one for me to say what I would say to the fans. I understand their frustration. I would definitely say that and they are completely entitled to their own opinion.
"They pay good money to follow us around and support their club. I am sure they have supported us for a number of years so they are definitely entitled to their opinion and I can understand their frustration. But I wouldn't put that on the manager.
"We have to stand up ourselves as players. On that day [at Stoke], it wasn't the manager's fault we went 3-0 down like we did in the first half. It was us as a group of players - we were not at the required level. On that day, it would have been harsh for a fan to completely blame our manager. As players, we are adults and we need to stand up and take some of that blame ourselves."
Arsenal return to action this weekend when they travel to face Liverpool at Anfield.
Daniel Lewis
