‘It was painful in the eyes for me’ - Mikel Obi criticises Arsenal's performance against Chelsea

The Gunners defeated the Blues 2-1 at the weekend, making it their third loss against their London rivals.

The three goals scored in the game came from set pieces, which were all scored by Arsenal, one each from William Saliba and Jurrien Timber and an own goal from Hincapie.

Despite the Gunners securing a crucial win, the Chelsea legend voiced his disappointment with the quality of the match, accusing Mikel Arteta's side of lacking creativity and being overly dependent on set pieces.

Speaking on his "Obi One Podcast", Mikel contrasted the recent London derby with the high-stakes encounters he experienced during his playing career.

"When you go into derbies, these are games I looked forward to playing back then because there's a lot of excitement and joy," Mikel stated. 

"When I watch these local derbies now, rivalries that should produce a lot, there should be something... creativity and potential."

"That's the whole package that we used to enjoy. But watching the game the other day was tough to watch. It was painful in the eyes for me," he added.

"There was not a lot going on because you expected to see a lot more from the teams," he lamented. "Yes, they did win the game, but Arsenal were horrible to watch. There was no creativity in the team. There was no excitement; there was nothing."

Mikel's comments come as Arsenal continue their push for the Premier League title, grinding out important results in the final stretch of the season. 

The victory temporarily sent the Gunners to the top of the league table, establishing a five-point lead over Manchester City, who have a game in hand.