Emmanuel Petit reveals why he still believes Arsenal can overhaul Liverpool in the title race as he locks horns with Jamie Carragher
Emmanuel Petit revealed he still believes Arsenal can win the Premier League title this season despite trailing runaway leaders Liverpool by six points.
The Reds’ 2-0 victory at Brentford on Saturday, secured after Darwin Nunez’s stoppage-time double, saw them extend their gap over Mikel Arteta’s side, who were held to a 2-2 draw by Aston Villa despite taking a two-goal lead at the Emirates.
Free-scoring Liverpool have also played a game less than their closest rivals, meaning that the outcome of the race remains firmly in their control.
Arteta himself recently drew a downbeat comparison between the top two, questioning the depth of his squad in comparison to Arne Slot’s.
But Petit, who memorably won the title with the Gunners in the 1997-98 season, has seen enough to be confident that all is not lost for his former club.
Locking horns with Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, Petit said: ‘I know that he (Carragher) will disagree with me.
Emmanuel Petit believes Arsenal can still win the Premier League title this season
Liverpool hold a six-point lead at the top of the table and have a game in hand
But Petit says shaky Reds confidence could give the Gunners the surprise advantage
‘But from my experience I know that we did it in 1998 and we’ve seen it again this season with Manchester City. They were fighting for the best position and dropped. Chelsea as well. They were second for weeks as well.
‘Things go so fast in the Premier League. Jamie said to me, with all the strikers you have at Arsenal you cannot win the Premier League. I disagree with that.
‘They’re not far from Liverpool by scoring goals. Liverpool have 50 goals, Arsenal have 43. They are almost the same in terms of defence, 20, 21. The difference is not that huge. Consistency in results is the most important thing in the Premier League.
‘Liverpool and other teams are dealing with so many competitions. Arsenal, they have so many injured players and they’re going to be back soon, so they’ll be fresh. They will only concentrate on the Premier League and Champions League.
‘In February, just like Liverpool, they will also qualify for the next one, the Champions League. They will make a turnover as well. There are so many reasons.
‘Liverpool are not that well the last few weeks. They are conceding goals all the time.
‘They’re not that confident.’
Arteta, however, struck a less optimistic tone after the draw with Villa, insisting that the number of injuries have taken a toll on Arsenal’s fading title hopes.
Mikel Arteta himself admitted mounting injuries were hurting his side’s title challenge
The Gunners were held to a 2-2 draw with Aston Villa despite taking a two-goal lead
Liverpool beat Brentford 2-0 after a stoppage-time brace from substitute Darwin Nunez
‘There are moments, and obviously they (Liverpool) managed to do win,’ he said.
‘They made the subs, and the subs made the impact and changed the game. On our side it was the opposite, even after conceding the two goals very close to each other.
‘The danger was that I knew half the team could go downhill because we were physically drained.’
