Arsenal great Ray Parlour explains why Mikel Arteta can win title and where transfer target Declan Rice needs to improve
ARSENAL legend Ray Parlour believes his former club will win the Premier League because Manchester City may focus on other competition.
The Gunners are top of the table with eight points separating them from second-placed City, who have a game in hand.
Parlour, who won three titles with the North Londoners, believes manager Mikel Arteta can lead his team all the way to the trophy.
That is because the reigning Prem champions will be preoccupied with the FA Cup and the Champions League, which remains the only major honour that still evades them.
The former England international loves how Arsenal are playing and advised them to enjoy the challenge as that will help them win more matches and apply more pressure on City.
Parlour told SunSport: “Well, there certainly is a long way to go. And I’ve always tried to play it down a little bit because the pressure will build on Arsenal because that’s what happens when they’re six or seven games to go but all they can do – and I know it’s a cliche – just keep playing the way you are. Enjoy it.
“And again, it’s a young team, so they look a little bit fearless at times. I know Man City beat them at the Emirates and the [Manchester] United game wasn’t great, but even then they had a few chances in the first half.
“So all I can say is Mikel Arteta has got it really going. What I like about their play now is when they lose the ball they’re trying to win it back quickly. A little bit like City do sometimes, so I think they could do it. I really do.
“I mean, Man City are gonna have the FA Cup. They’re gonna have the Champions League, which I think deep down Pep Guardiola really wants that Champions League for the club.
“So hopefully that takes their mind off it a little bit and they’ve got a tricky game against Bayern Munich now with [Thomas] Tuchel going in. So I think Arsenal have a big game at the weekend with Leeds United at home fighting to avoid relegation.
“So if you’re getting another three points, it starts putting a little bit more pressure on Manchester City and we know that game against [Crystal] Palace was a big one because Man City didn’t play and went into the international break with an eight-point gap. You know that sometimes mentally that’s really good for you.”
Arsenal are focused on the Premier League title race, but are also keeping an eye on the summer transfer window with West Ham superstar Declan Rice a top target.
Parlour insists Rice would be a perfect fit for Arteta’s midfield if the Gunners manage to win the bidding war against the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea.
However, the former midfielder insists the England international still needs to improve and has to learn to get forward “a little bit more”.
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Parlour added: “Declan is a super player, we saw him play for England the other night [against Italy] and he was brilliant again as he scored a goal.
“But yeah, sometimes you have to get forward a little bit more because I always think [when it comes to] holding midfielders there’ll be occasions in a game where you do get past your other midfielder and it’s just a bit of common sense for me that the other midfielder fills in for you.
“That’s what I used to do when we played for Arsenal, because you know, not everybody’s got a set position at times, you’ll see yourself in a different part of the pitch.
“And that’s where the other team-mates have got to say, ‘Right, he’s out of position there but we fill in for him and then there’s no problem’. So I think Declan Rice definitely can get forward a little bit more.
“At any team he goes into he would make them stronger, so if Arsenal have got a chance to maybe buy Declan Rice, especially if they can win the league this year, that would be a fantastic signing.
“But I’m sure there’s a big queue of people waiting to see where he’s going in the summer.”
Ray Parlour was speaking to The Sun on behalf of Fairplay. Fairplay is a peer to peer, free to use betting app which is revolutionising the way people wager, collect and distribute funds.