Mikel Arteta has Arsenal where Arsene Wenger wanted them to be, but the title bid is a long shot – Stan Collymore

When Arsenal announced the appointment of Mikel Arteta as coach, it clearly left me calm.

Pep’s assistant, I thought. “Perfect for Arsenal, he’s a really nice guy without a ruthless streak.”

I have to say I was wrong about that and now I’m getting really excited about it.

In eight months, he has had them play from behind and pretty much where old player Arsene Wenger wanted them to be.

So it’s a 9/10 for Arteta for proving me wrong and a 9/10 for winning two trophies.

But even so, I had to shake my head at the excessive celebrations that followed Arsenal’s victory in the penalty shoot-out over Liverpool in the Community Shield and this idea, spread on social media by some of their fans, that now we are before a team that challenges the title.

Arteta has clearly learned from his Manchester City mentor Pep Guardiola that any old pot will do when he nods to the fact that he has added to the club’s overall silverware account.

But having watched English football for over 40 years, I can tell those two guys that the Shield is warm and cuddly and nothing more than that.

Don’t get me wrong, winning breeds success and I understand that Arteta was probably trying to instill that in his players. “Keep in your head what it feels like to lift a trophy,” that sort of thing.

But really, all they’ve done is win seven games to lift the FA Cup and Community Shield and that’s a long way from having what it takes to win 15 or 38 trophies.

My concern now is that there is an expectation among Gunners fans that they are going to make this leap from winning trophies from level two to level one this season.

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Beating Leeds, Bournemouth, Portsmouth, Sheffield United, Manchester City and Chelsea to win the FA Cup and then winning what, in gastronomic terms, is just an amuse bouche is not a title contender.

The way he judges a team’s title chances is by asking the question: “Between August and February, can you break the opposition’s back when everyone was on the starting line together?” And I don’t think Arsenal can.

Now if we get to January and they’re in second or third place, a point or so behind Liverpool or Manchester City and mixing it up with Manchester United and Chelsea, then I’ll say, “Okay, maybe they have some steel. I thought resilience was missing ”.

But if I compare their first XIs and teams with City and Liverpool … well, I’m afraid they don’t compare.

Is Bernd Leno as good a goalkeeper as Alisson or Ederson? No, not even close.

Are Arsenal’s central defenders better than their Anfield and Etihad counterparts? Absolutely not.

Do they have a better dominant midfielder than Fabinho or Fernandinho? No again.

And while forwards Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alex Lacazette will score goals if served, that’s not enough.

So while it is well done and still going to Arteta, Arsenal still have a lot to do before they compete again for the highest honors.

And the club’s Twitter feed must understand that instead of pounding that we just witnessed Guardiola’s Barcelona 2011 reincarnation as they did on Saturday.