Former Scotland international Pat Nevin doesn’t believe Arsenal can compete with the other big clubs in England for top players in the transfer market because of their stagnation over the last few years.
Arsenal have already been struggling to keep pace with Chelsea in the Premier League title chase and fresh questions over their mentality resurfaced when they suffered a 5-1 defeat at Bayern Munich on Wednesday night.
Despite spending big money in the summer to bring in several players, there are suggestions that Arsene Wenger always holds himself back in the transfer market and never goes for the jugular.
However, Nevin feels even if Arsenal look to bring in the top players, they would struggle to compete with clubs such as Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea at the higher echelons of the transfer market.
He believes the Gunners have been stagnating for too long to attract any top level players to the Emirates now.
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Nevin said on BBC Radio 5 live: “Some bad news for the Arsenal caller [who said] ‘get off your backside and go and spend some money’.
“I don’t think you are going to be able to; when you have got Man City, Man United, Chelsea and others chasing players, they are not going to come to Arsenal, even Liverpool arguably.
“They are not going to come to Arsenal because it’s been too long. The bigger problem is keeping the couple that you have got, they have got a real difficulty there.
“Yes, you will be able to buy players but [Robert] Lewandowski? Absolutely in your dreams, that ain’t going to happen because it’s been left too long, the stagnation is there.
“And it’s been there for too long.”
