Arsenal's Arteta on Raheem Sterling showing vs. Leicester - 'Weren't at our standards'

Arsenal winger Raheem Sterling didn't have his best afternoon against Leicester City.

When Kai Havertz went down with his hamstring injury, the question being asked was who Arsenal could turn to in a bid to get some form of attacking threat up front.

For some that was Raheem Sterling and it was out of necessity with the Gunners not having any other options. This was Sterling's chance to begin to get a foothold in the season with Arsenal and unfortunately, it was one he squandered...and badly.

In the opening half an hour, Sterling was caught offside more times than he had shots, and when he was in a position to be sent through, he was on his heels and the chance was gone.

Raheem lasted 70 minutes against Leicester before Mikel Arteta pulled the plug and brought Mikel Merino on and the Spaniard scored twice in six minutes to get the visitors a crucial win.

And when talking post-game about Sterling's performance, Arteta wasn't exactly glowing in his endorsement.

"Everybody [needs rhythm]. In the first half, especially in the first 20-25 minutes, we weren’t at our standards and when that happens, you look to the front players," Arteta said.

It was a horror showing from Sterling which our own James Cormack described as "One of the worst individual performances [we] have seen from a Gunner this season."

Now the real question will remain - what does Arteta do against West Ham?

The only saving grace for Sterling is that he will likely be playing out of need rather than want given the lack of options up top for the Gunners, but surely he has to be better going forward otherwise, as Ian Wright's words ring in out ear that if this doesn't work, "he'll go with a whimper."

Against the Foxes, Raheem did go out with a whimper, and yes, he wasn't alone. However, the Gunners need someone to take the goal-scoring mantle. And yes, it was Sterling's first start in forever, so there is a little slack, but not much.

Plus, how confident will Arteta be selecting Sterling after seeing Ethan Nwaneri's performance and Merino's two-goal effort? We can't imagine that confidence meter will be too high at all.

But the Gunners will have to call on Raheem eventually whether that be as a substitute or a starter given the lack of options, but a performance like this can't happen again.

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