I am losing patience watching Arsenal... it is looking like the beginning of the end for Arsene Wenger - TACKLE KEOWN

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I think Jose Mourinho would love for that move to happen, for two reasons.

One, because of the quality of the player, and two because it would be a poke in the eye for Arsene Wenger. That rivalry between the two managers has not gone away.

It is looking like the beginning of the end for Arsene Wenger at Arsenal.

Since signing his new contract, there has been no re-emergence that has allowed Arsenal to compete with the best.

I was astonished by Wenger’s interview after the 0-0 draw with West Ham. I felt he was accepting the performance.

We knew that West Ham sitting deep would be an issue but Arsenal did not have a cutting edge.

Arsenal are now in seventh place, behind Burnley, and I am losing patience watching them.

Arsenal have become a cup team. On any given day they can be better than anyone else, such as their FA Cup semi-final and final victories over Manchester City and Chelsea last season, but they lack consistency.

The league is what really defines you. Teams become champions because week in, week out they are the best.

I do not take anything away from what Wenger has achieved at this football club. Lifting the FA Cup seven times is nothing short of remarkable.

The situation with Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil has not helped. I would be surprised if they are persuaded to stay.

Jack Wilshere had not started a Premier League match for Arsenal for 557 days but was their best player against West Ham. That is a plus for Wenger but why was Ozil not bossing a game like that?

He kept getting deeper and deeper in the match while Wilshere was the only player driving through that midfield.

Arsenal were not quick enough, not sharp enough – but they cannot use fatigue as an excuse. Their workload is the same as if had they been in the Champions League but this season Wenger has fielded his B team in the Europa League. Against West Ham, Arsenal should have been snarling and ready to go.

Wenger can redeem things by winning the Europa League and getting Arsenal back into the Champions League. If the team continues to lack a cutting edge, that is not going to happen.

Great leaders know the right time to go but the unfortunate thing for Wenger is he cannot be impartial in that decision. He has to take himself out of the equation and think, ‘Is the team getting better season on season? Am I the right man for the job?’

Whatever happens, Wenger must do the right thing for the football club.

I have remained a believer in Wayne Rooney. I know it is different for strikers but I played to the ripe old age of 37 and cannot understand how people have written him off at 32.

I have argued this before – why can’t Rooney do what Paul Scholes did and drop deeper? Scholes was protected by a manager in Alex Ferguson who knew that he had to find a new role for the player to maximise his special qualities.

If Ferguson was still in charge, maybe Rooney would have dropped back into a midfield berth. 

He did not have that with Mourinho. When you have a manager who does not think you are still good enough, it is easy to lose your desire.

I do not buy the argument that Rooney has more miles on the clock because he came into the game at a young age. The reason he has faded in recent years is a lack of desire.

Last season was like an open-top bus parade for Rooney, breaking all manner of records. Now, he has that hunger back.

As he showed against West Ham, he is still capable of great things. He has scored more Premier League goals this season than in each of his last two campaigns at United, and has the same tally as Alvaro Morata, Romelu Lukaku and Raheem Sterling.

To maintain this level, Rooney has to manage his pre-season carefully this summer. When you get into your 30s, you cannot afford to take a holiday. You have to live your lifestyle in the right way.

Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool should all qualify – and the English clubs will be helped by the fact that one of Real Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain will exit at this stage.

Juventus will be tricky for Tottenham. Can Mauricio Pochettino outfox them? Juventus will want to drag this into a tactical scrap and make life difficult for the likes of Harry Kane and Dele Alli. For me, that tie is in the balance.

Antonio Conte will be doing the same when Chelsea face Barcelona. I was really impressed with Conte when he was at Italy. He took a team branded as the worst Italian side for 50 years to the quarter-finals of Euro 2016, where they only lost on penalties.

With the Premier League title surely gone for Chelsea, does he focus on the Champions League? In Hazard and Morata, they could have a real sting in the tail.

But they really have to go for it at Stamford Bridge. I do not see them winning at the Nou Camp.

No. I think his failure to score against United’s top-six rivals is linked to the way they play against these sides.

When United have scored counter-attacking goals against these sides, it is the likes of Lingard, Martial and Rashford who tend to benefit. Lukaku has been unlucky in these games.

Jose Mourinho has no right to go to the City dressing room and tell them not to celebrate.

He needs to stick to the football. His behaviour has to be better – he is the role model and leader to his players.

I have loved what Mourinho has done with his team this year. They have definitely improved and I like the way he has given players such as Luke Shaw a second chance.

Mourinho may be a serial winner of trophies but he is not a serial winner of friends. The rivalry between these two superpower teams in the North West must not become another Real Madrid v Barcelona off the field.

I went into the Manchester United dressing room to say well done after the FA Cup semi-final in 1999.

Arsene Wenger had gone in to shake Alex Ferguson’s hand and I followed with Tony Adams.
Afterwards, I never wanted to go into an opposition dressing room again. I did not like the way they were celebrating.

At Old Trafford, the home team has to walk past the away team dressing room after the game. If the door is open – as it invariably will be – the home team have to witness their opponents’ celebrations.

Manchester United should not be reacting to City’s celebrations but it must be difficult when you have to walk past them.

I don’t see it – but I think it will be close.

Manchester United’s 3-1 win at Arsenal is the best game of the season so far and this could match it as a spectacle.

For Pep Guardiola, this is the perfect game now. City cannot afford to be complacent. They saw what United did to Arsenal and knew they had to raise their game for the trip to Old Trafford.

Having beaten Real Madrid, Tottenham could view City as a similar opportunity.

And we do not know how this City team will respond when they lose in the Premier League. From the outside looking in, City look like champions-elect.

But as a player you do not dare to dream about that. There is always a degree of inner doubt.
In 2002 and 2004, my mentality was to keep going until the journey is done.

I played about eight games in that run, coming into the side after recovering from a broken leg.

You feel like you are coming into a well-oiled machine. There is a real group feeling of solidarity.

That was the most galvanised squad I was involved in during my career. We benefited from having two groups: one with experienced professionals such as Lee Dixon and Tony Adams who were in their last season but could still play at the level when required, and another with the stars who would go unbeaten in 2003-2004. We even had three goalkeepers who all played enough games to win a title medal!

The 14-game winning run was a good educational experience for what happened in 2004. Everyone picked up the mentality required.

When you came into the team, you did not want to be the weak link. You had to get in the zone, raise the bar and not let anyone down. It helped me get in the England squad at the end of that season.

In training at Manchester City now, there will be smiles all over the place. They will be buzzing. But they have won absolutely nothing yet!