Gabby Agbonlahor says Fabio Vieira ‘didn’t look interested’ against West Ham (Picture: Getty)
Gabby Agbonlahor has slammed Fabio Vieira and Kai Havertz after Arsenal’s Carabao Cup exit to West Ham, feeling the duo could not be bothered.
The Gunners splashed out €40m to sign Vieira from Porto in the summer of 2022 and he has made 43 appearances to date, providing three goals and nine assists.
Vieira usually finds himself on the bench but was handed a rare start in Wednesday’s clash at the London Stadium, as West Ham recorded a 3-1 victory.
He was hoping to make an impression to force his way into the XI on a more regular basis but he had no impact on the game and it passed him by completely.
Havertz, meanwhile, also produced a lacklustre display and faded as the match went on despite a bright start.
Speaking after Arsenal’s defeat, Agbonlahor told talkSPORT: ‘The problem is that the players that come in that haven’t been playing. The Fabio Vieira’s, the Havertz’s, didn’t look interested.
‘I think someone said to Mikel Arteta before the game, he did an interview saying,’Arsenal players aren’t really interested in this game, are they?’ – and he said, ‘Why not? Why shouldn’t we be up for this game?’.
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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, meanwhile, believes his players ignored his warning about West Ham.
‘I’m very disappointed with the result and the performance, and I’m responsible for that,’ Arteta said after the match.
‘I tried to warn them for 48 hours that today was about how you’re going to compete in these games, and in the Carabao Cup away from home, we haven’t done that well enough.’
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Two very bad performances.
