Roy Keane has pointed Mikel Arteta question despite Arsenal win over Man Utd
Riccardo Calafiori's strike proved sufficient for the Gunners on this occasion, though such narrow margins may not always deliver the goods.
The previous campaign saw Mikel Arteta's men pay a hefty price for surrendering advantageous positions.
Arsenal held the lead in seven of their final eight fixtures yet managed just three victories, squandering commanding positions against Everton, Brentford, Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.
"You wonder why Arsenal are still coming up short - it's because they are still happy to sit back at 1-0," Keane remarked on Sky Sports, reports the Mirror.
"And then you think, is that the reason you drew so many games last year?".
"You compare that to Man City and Liverpool. They are always looking to go on and get the second or the third. Even on a bad day they can score two or three goals."
Both Liverpool and City netted four times during the season's opening weekend, though the defending champions were hauled back from 2-0 to 2-2 before eventually overcoming Bournemouth.
Keane's observation regarding draws references Arsenal's tally of 14 stalemates in the league, leaving them 10 points adrift of Liverpool despite suffering an identical number of defeats.
Fellow pundit Micah Richards praised Arsenal's defensive resilience.
Nevertheless, he seemed to suggest that a more adventurous attacking approach might eliminate the necessity for such rearguard actions. "It's how much you can dig deep," Richards said.
"What has helped Arsenal stay in title races in recent years is that when they get into that low block, they are very difficult to break down. Then you add in the set-pieces and they are a good team. I would just like to see them be a little more brave."
Arsenal manager Arteta harboured no illusions about the standard of his side's performance but remained pleased with the outcome. "We came here away and won which is a big result," the Spaniard said.
"We were clearly not at our best. We attacked the box and we reacted well to unusual mistakes. The team reacted time after time in an incredible way. Very proud of that because that is why we got the opportunity to win the game.
"We showed a resilience and a will to win. They put you on the ropes here, you will have to have moments when you suffer. To find a way to win at this ground, I'm very happy with the team."
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