Paul Merson has claimed that Arsenal are just “two games” away from being Premier League champions despite their “shocking result” against Everton.
The Gunners suffered a setback last week as they fell to a 1-0 defeat at Goodison Park against Everton in Sean Dyche’s first game in charge of the Premier League strugglers.
Man City could have subsequently closed in to within just two points of the league leaders having played a game more if they beat Tottenham last Sunday.
Pep Guardiola’s side were unable to make the most of this opportunity as they were beaten 1-0 at The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Arsenal remain five points clear of City with a game in hand heading into this weekend’s set of fixtures. The Londoners are at home against Brentford, while Man City welcome Aston Villa.
Merson thinks the Gunners will beat Brentford 2-1 at the Emirates and he has explained why his former club could potentially be just two games away from all but clinching the league title.
“This is Arsenal’s biggest game of the season by a million miles. They’ve just had a shocking result against Everton, and it was a poor performance. I’ve said it before – you’re going to lose football matches. It’s about how you respond after you lose,” Merson told Sportskeeda.
“If Arsenal had defeated Everton last week, they would’ve won the Premier League. They would’ve gone eight points clear at the top with a game in hand. Everton had a lot of energy about them, and I felt sorry for Jorginho the other day. I didn’t think it was the right time to bring him on.
“If Arsenal win this game and then get a result against City next week, it’s all over. With their fixture list in the Premier League after these two games, you’d expect Arsenal to avoid defeat. If Arsenal win the next two games, I think they’ll be Premier League champions.
“Brentford are playing as well as anybody, and they’re on a roll on a half. If you look at the form table, Brentford are on top at the moment.
“Arsenal played well at Brentford last time, and there’s still a lot of bitterness there from last season. This is going to be a hard game, but I’m backing Arsenal to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League table this weekend.”
Arsenal are in action on Saturday afternoon, while Man City come up against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Merson adds that City “have to win” against the Villans and he “expects them to get all three points” via a 2-0 victory at the Etihad.
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