Mikel Arteta informed of the one major mistake he made in Arsenal's defeat to Chelsea

Tony Adams believes Mikel Arteta should have brought Ainsley Maitland-Niles should have come on at half-time in Arsenal's 2-0 defeat to Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.

The Gunners suffered their second successive 2-0 loss at the hands of the European champions and were jeered off the pitch at full-time.

The defeat came just nine days after their shock loss at the hands of newly-promoted Brentford - meaning Arsenal are yet to register a single point in their opening two matches of the Premier League season.

Arteta went with Kieran Tierney at left-back, but his attacking tendencies left the Gunners a bit exposed in defence.

That's according to former Arsenal defender Adams, who thinks that the out-of-favour Maitland-Niles should have filled in at left-back, which would have allowed Tierney to push further up the pitch without the responsibility of tracking back constantly.

“When you have got that system and Mount was coming in with Havertz,” Adams told Premier League Productions, via HITC. “You are leaving Reece James, the wide guy so free.

“I said it at half-time that maybe Maitland-Niles should have gone in at left-back and pushed Tierney on.

“Tierney is fantastic going that way, but we just needed somebody to sit in there and cover that space.”

Maitland-Niles has been heavily linked with an exit from the Emirates Stadium this summer, with the English star admitting that it may be time to say goodbye to the north London club.

He told the Telegraph in June: “If I was to get a phone call from someone at Arsenal and they said they’d like a meeting tomorrow, then it would be easier that way.

"They can tell me whether they’ve got plans to play me in the future or if they want to sell me. I’ve heard they want to make some space [in the squad] and some money so I’m not sure.”

He added: “I want a decision. I want some clarity. And then hopefully I can get to work with whoever I need to get to work with.

"Whether that is finding a new club or whether that is carrying on with my training. I would like some kind of indication of what is happening.

"Where they [Arsenal] see me. If it works out it works out, if it doesn’t then kiss Arsenal goodbye.

"It’s been a long journey but a proud one at that. Maybe they still want to do something and things could change. If not, there’s always other teams."