Mikel Arteta sits "in an ejection seat" at Arsenal after their dismal start to the new Premier League season, according to club legend Robert Pires.
The Gunners, typically considered a cornerstone of English football's "big six", lie in 15th heading into their Boxing Day clash with Chelsea, after a wretched campaign to date.
The North London outfit have lost eight of their 14 opening games, and while they posted a perfect record in their Europa League group stage performance, their manager occupies an increasingly untenable position.
Pires, a Highbury hero who was a member of Arsene Wenger's Invincibles squad over a decade-and-a-half ago, admits that he finds it tough to believe just how they have slipped so badly.
"I find it difficult to explain this situation," Pires said, speaking to Ouest France . "When you're in a negative spiral, it's very complicated to get out of it."
Pires said the Chelsea game was set up to be "important for the future of the club", and he has little doubt manager Arteta is fighting to stay in his job.
"I know him well. I know what he does, the training he sets up, what he would like his team to develop," Pires said.
"But on the pitch, it does not work. I don't like coaches being sacked but unfortunately that's what happens when there are bad results. He's in an ejection seat."
Arsenal were hoping to maintain a strong record in Boxing Day fixtures, having not lost at home in 12 matches on December 26 since going down 2-0 to Nottingham Forest in 1987 at Highbury.
Their run of nine consecutive home wins on Boxing Day includes a 2-1 win over Chelsea in 2001, when Pires played as Sol Campbell and Sylvain Wiltord scored for the Gunners.
Pires never experienced anything comparable to their recent struggles during his time at the club. Arsenal had not won in their last seven Premier League games going into Saturday's clash with Chelsea.
They were out to avoid going eight without a win, which would match their worst Premier League record, having experienced such a dry spell from November 1992 to January 1993.
"Today, Arsenal are playing to survive," Pires said. "It's hard to say, I never thought I would one day. We are talking about Arsenal after all."
