Arsenal technical director Edu believes the club has a "beautiful future" under Mikel Arteta despite suffering its worst start to a league season for 46 years.
"Mikel is doing a great job, he's doing really well here," Edu said of the Gunners' under-fire manager, according to The Guardian's Nick Ames.
"It would be very unfair to (not afford him patience) because what a year we have faced: Three months without football matches, a lot of things changing in the club," Edu continued.
"He started, stopped, and when he started to get an understanding of all the squad he stopped again. It would be really unfair to Mikel to say something about that because the year was so challenging for everyone but even more for Mikel, who had just arrived at the club."
Arsenal are writhing in 15th place in the Premier League table following Sunday's 1-0 home defeat to Burnley.
Arteta took the team's reins last December after assisting Pep Guardiola at Manchester City and drew rave reviews over his first few months in charge, logging top-flight wins over Manchester United and Liverpool and leading his team to silverware in the FA Cup.
But Arteta now faces fierce criticism for Arsenal's attacking deficiencies and disciplinary record. The north London side has scored one fewer goal than Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin this season and has received six red cards since Arteta's first game as manager, which is twice as many as any other Premier League club over that period.
"If we start to see problems internally - if the players don't believe anymore, if the staff isn't good enough - then I will say, 'Hmm, I'm a bit worried,'" Edu, who spent four-and-a-half years at Arsenal as a player, said. "But it's such an unfair situation right now because the way I see things every day, everything's right. It's strange to say that because the results are not coming, but I see properly the way Mikel is working.
"I want people to understand what we are doing. We are in the process to have a beautiful future.
"Since we arrived here we have been changing, changing, changing: Now it's time to be stable and together at the same time."
Arsenal welcome Southampton to the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday. The Saints have won back-to-back games against Brighton & Hove Albion and Sheffield United, respectively.