Jamie Carragher believes Arsenal are still “the team to stop” in this year's Premier League title race, but warned the Gunners cannot afford to drop too many points following Manchester City's strong start.
Mikel Arteta's side ended Arsenal's 22-year wait for the league title last season, lifting the Premier League for the first time in over two decades. Their success was built on a solid defensive approach, yet Carragher pointed out the team's lack of attacking stars.
Failed summer moves
During the summer, Arsenal attempted to sign a marquee attacker from the Spanish capital. Vinicius Junior was linked with the Gunners before signing a new contract with Real Madrid, while Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez hoped for a move to Barcelona rather than the Emirates.
Arsenal edged past Nottingham Forest on Sunday to maintain a three-point gap to league leaders Manchester City, winning 1-0 with just one shot on target.
Speaking on Sky Sports, the former Liverpool defender stated: “We’ve said before that Arsenal are not the most exciting champions we’ve ever seen.
“They still lack stardust in the final third and didn’t get that superstar over the line that they wanted in the summer.
“There was talk of Vinicius Junior coming in obviously and Julian Alvarez but they didn’t get those deals done. They do lack star power in the final third and we saw more evidence of that on Sunday.
“Some people will also say that Mikel Arteta has still got the reins on and is stopping them from showing their absolute best going forward because they value the defence so much.”
Best squad in the country
Despite criticism of Arsenal's attacking ability, Carragher reiterated that he still felt the Gunners have the best squad in the league, and as such, the best chance of winning the Premier League for a second season in a row.
“But they’ve got the best squad in the country and the best starting line-up, I don’t think anyone can go up against that really except maybe Man City,” Carragher added.
“We said all of this last year as well, they didn’t have a game-changer but what they had is two top-quality players in every position.
“I still see Arsenal as the team to stop. If they dropped more points on Sunday they could have been five behind Man City.”
City's financial case backdrop
This season's title race is being played against the backdrop of Man City being found guilty of breaching the Premier League's financial rules, pending an appeal. With City's punishment currently unknown, with point deductions and expulsion rumoured, Carragher feels that title race predictions have to be based on the current league table.
He continued: “We obviously don’t know what’s going to happen with City, we have to take it as it is right now.
“Arsenal would have been a bit worried about being five points behind someone like Man City and dropping points in quick succession but they got the win.”
