Unai Emery has named Arsenal's summer signing of Nicolas Pepe as one of the problems which ultimately cost him his job.
The Spaniard was sacked as Arsenal head coach in November following a poor run of form that saw the Gunners fall way off the pace in the Champions League race.
Emery was eventually replaced by Mikel Arteta, and has since explained the key factors that contributed to his downfall at the Emirates.
"I am clear about my diagnosis and we did good things there," Emery told Marca via Sport Witness.
"I think we had a good first year, taking two competitions well as Europa League and Premier League.
"The process was good. When we played possession, we did it; when we had to press, we did it. And we were competitive, playing as the game required. With moments of possession game and moments of three quick touches.
"This second year, we have not played well; we have not defended well; We have not been competitive; We did not transmit. And I told the players myself.
"There were several problems: four captains; the Ozil-Kolasinac case; Pepe's signing, who needs time since he came from France. We didn't play well, that's for sure.
"That brought us bad results, there was no improvement, the fans focused on me and they threw me out. But I keep the positive things, there were many.
“I had the funeral and mourning. After my sacking, I dreamed a month of things about Arsenal. It was a natural process. And I overcame that. When I no longer dreamed them, I already knew that I had overcome it.”
Since Emery's departure, the Gunners have seen an upturn in results under Arteta, with the north London side going unbeaten during January.
Arsenal next face a trip to Burnley on Sunday, and could include new signing Pablo Mari in their squad.
Fellow loan capture Cedric Soares will miss the game, however, with Arteta confirming the right-back is still recovering from injury.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Arteta said: “He [Cedric] has big experience, he has played in different countries and in this league, and he knows what it means.
"He was very willing to go to another top club, he has that desire and commitment. I followed him a few seasons ago, and I really like what he can bring and they were the right conditions for us to try to improve the squad.
“We were assessing him yesterday. We will have more results today but he has got a little issue and I don’t think he’ll be available for Sunday.”
