Former Premier League midfielder Roy Keane has expressed his concern for Arsenal in their pursuit of Manchester City for the Premier League title.
The Gunners come off the back of two winless games in the league with a 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth last weekend and a 2-2 draw against Liverpool on Sunday.
Arsenal took the lead through Bukayo Saka before Virgil van Dijk equalised for the Reds. Mikel Merino then gave Arsenal the lead again before halftime, but a Mo Salah goal in the 81st minute led to a draw at full time and the points getting split between the two sides.
Mikel Arteta’s side are now in third place in the league on 18 points from nine matches and sit five points behind reigning Premier League champions Manchester City.
Following the 2-2 draw, former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane questioned the Gunners’ belief in themselves.
He said on Sky Sports: “I just worry about that belief and that mentality – do they really have that belief and conviction that they’re a top team and that they can really challenge Manchester City, I still don’t see it. I think they’ve made great progress and it seems really critical but you have to look at when you compare them to Man City.”
Mikel Arteta’s side were unable to hold onto their 2-1 lead despite having the backing of the home fans at the Emirates, something that Keane was quick to criticise.
“I still look at this mentality of Arsenal, when you’re watching them live, they’re 2-1 up, can you go on and take the initiative, use the fans behind you and I always feel like this Arsenal team step back.”
Arsenal have faced injury problems
Many were predicting that Sunday’s clash against Liverpool would be a tough one for the Gunners due to the fact that several players were missing due to injury.
Riccardo Calafiori and Martin Odegaard were the two biggest names to miss the game with defender William Saliba also missing out due to a suspension.
Furthermore, defenders Gabriel and Jurrien Timber both had to be replaced during the Liverpool game due to further injuries which could cause Mikel Arteta a few selection headaches ahead of their next two games against Preston North End and Newcastle United.
