Arteta claims he has 'unheard of' changes to deal with in his Arsenal squad

Mikel Arteta says he is having to deal with 'unheard of' changes to his squad as part of Arsenal's owner-led 'project' - but the under-fire boss knows he needs to produce immediate results.

The Gunners are bottom of the Premier League with zero points ahead of Saturday's visit of Norwich.

They were the country's biggest spenders with over £150million invested this summer, a policy that involves targeting players aged under 23.

In the last year Arsenal have now brought in 10 new signings and sold or released 21 players.

And Arteta said: 'It is a completely different squad with those numbers, it is unheard of. Now we have to make it work. We have to glide it together, build relationships, chemistry, understanding. We have to adapt and do that really quickly.

'The amount of changes in two years is almost 30 players. We are all participating, trying to build this project, obviously led by the owners.

'It is a project we believe in and have to assemble, because we believe it is the best option for the future of the club. We all take responsibility. We are all involved in the decision. Now we have to make it work.

'The complexity in football is that you want to build a medium-to-long-term project, with immediate results. We have to embrace that. There is no other way in football.'

Arsenal's disastrous start to the season has not been aided by Covid-19 and injury problems, as well as some shambolic defending.

And Arteta added: 'You have to earn the right to win. In the last few games, we have done basic things that haven't allowed us to compete.

'We are getting judged on every result we have. We don't want to use any excuse, but looking back on the past few weeks, with a bit of perspective, it's been a lot (to deal with).

'So it needs a bit of perspective, but we are willing and determined to change it as soon as possible. We have to reset now. We have to get everybody back on track and start to win football games.'

Ainsley Maitland-Niles is one player staying at Arsenal after talks with Arteta, who said: 'I am happy he has stayed, that was our intention.

'We put on the table our feelings what we have to do. He has embraced the opportunity and the chance.

'He knows he has a unique quality in any squad, which is his versatility to play in many positions. He needs to become the best at doing that. It is rare to find in football.'