According to Cole, Arteta is “in the storm at the moment”.
The Gunners are rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table having failed to pick up a point, or score a single goal in their first three fixtures.
Having lost to Brentford, Chelsea and Manchester City, Cole believes that anything less than victory over Norwich on September 11 is “probably the end” for Arteta.
He told Coral via Metro: “The future at Arsenal is obviously up in the air. I know they’ve played Chelsea, they played Manchester City, the two best teams, but it’s the manner of both defeats.
“They had all pre-season to prepare for the Brentford game and they got it wrong on the day because they weren’t at it mentally.
“That has happened too much with Arsenal. That’s not Arteta’s fault. It’s been something that’s just been like damp getting into the woodwork at the club.
“In the two defeats against the big boys, it was like they laid down and died.
“I do like how Arteta has handled the situation. He is hardening as a manager, you can see that in him. So, I think he’s got that. He’s obviously a well-schooled coach because of his work with Pep. He’s a thoughtful guy.
“He’s in the storm at the moment. He has to find a result against Norwich and if he doesn’t beat Norwich, I think it’s probably the end for him.”
Arteta shouldered the blame for Arsenal’s poor start following their 5-0 hammering at City, revealing that he spends a lot of time reflecting on his decisions.
“I always said and I’ve been more critical of myself and taking the blame every time only when we’ve had defeats,” he said.
“I question myself and I have to try and have the right people around me, look at every decision that I make and change it if I believe we should have done something different.”
