Former Arsenal attacker Samir Nasri has claimed that the Gunners' struggles are down to the club's underperforming players and not manager Arsene Wenger.

Arsenal have suffered defeat in three of their last five matches in all competitions and after losing ground in the Premier League and taking a 5-1 thumping at Bayern Munich in the first leg of their last-16 clash in the Champions League, realistically only have the FA Cup to play for in the remainder of the campaign.

Wenger's future at the Emirates has been under the microscope over the last couple of weeks, with the Frenchman's current deal due to expire at the end of the 2016-17 campaign.

Nasri, however, who spent three seasons under Wenger before leaving to join Manchester City, has insisted that the club's players "need to be checked", rather than just placing the blame on Arsenal's head coach.

"You cannot criticise a guy like Wenger - It's impossible," Nasri told Sky Sports News. "Arsenal were a big club but he made them even bigger. I think people need to be fair, it's not his fault that Arsenal are in the position they are, it's the players.

"It's the players on the pitch that get the results. There are a lot of things happening at Arsenal - the board, the players - they need to be checked, not just Arsene."

Arsenal are currently fourth in the Premier League table after 25 matches, just one point clear of fifth-placed Liverpool and 10 points behind league leaders Chelsea.