Former Arsenal legend Paul Merson does not believe the Gunners have a realistic chance of winning the title this season despite their recent good form.
The former England international thinks that the Arsenal defence is not good enough for Unai Emery’s side to maintain a title challenge despite their nine-game winning streak.
The Gunners downed Fulham in an impressive display on the weekend as an Aaron Ramsey strike and two goals each for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette gave them a comfortable 5-1 win.
The season got off to a poor start as Arsenal lost their opening two games to Manchester City and Chelsea but they have won their last six in the league since.
Emery turned things around by introducing a fluid, fast-paced style, with high pressing that the fans have been really enjoyed so far this campaign but it has not all been plain sailing.
The Gunners have already conceded 10 times this season highlighting their vulnerability in defence.
Summer signing Sokratis and German centre-back Shkodran Mustafi have been the preferred partnership in central defence for the Gunners this season but Merson is not convinced the pair have what it takes to keep Arsenal’s good form going.
The former midfielder has been harsh in his assessment of the team’s ability and firmly believes they are due a thrashing.
“Sooner or later they will be on the end of a big score – defensively they are all over the place,” he told Sky Sports.
“The one thing that gets them out of trouble is that they’re always going to score goals. But defensively, they are just not good enough.”
Arsenal go into the international break sat in the top four and will face Leicester City at the Emirates when they return to league action.
There is a growing sense of optimism around the club following the unbeaten run and fans could be heard singing “We’ve got our Arsenal back” during the game at Craven Cottage on the weekend.
It remains to be seen whether the Gunners back line has enough quality to keep the run going but with Aubameyang and Lacazette looking good playing in a front two, there is no doubt that Arsenal will be able to score plenty of goals.
They sit on 18 points after eight games, just two behind leaders Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool with the fixture against the latter on November 03 already looking like a tasty matchup.
The post Why Arsenal will get thrashed “sooner or later” – Paul Merson appeared first on Squawka News.
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