Arsenal narrowly missed out in the Premier League title decider against Manchester City, with Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard among the few players called up.
Arsenal stars Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard have been called up for their poor performance against Man City.
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Troy Deeney split into half of Arsenal’s squad and claimed he was “not present” during the defeat to Manchester City, which could be crucial in deciding where the Premier League trophy ends.
The Gunners knew a loss at the Etihad would give them a chance to take the lead over City on Wednesday night, with Erling Haaland’s second-half goal securing the three points.
Arsenal continued to wait for victory over the blue team in Manchester. Mikel Arteta’s side have also suffered an extended collapse at the end of the season, losing four of their last six games in all competitions.
Arsenal knew they needed big-name players, but Deeney criticized captain Martin Odegaard and talisman Declan Rice for a below-average performance in their biggest game of the season. He also targeted both full-backs.
“We talk about how great Manchester City are, but I have to say Noni Maduke didn’t show up, Martin Zvimendi didn’t show up, Martin Odegaard didn’t show up, Cristian Mosquera didn’t show up, Piero Hincapie didn’t show up,” he told CBS Sports.
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“And without a doubt, he’s a friend of mine. Declan Rice didn’t turn up. When you have so many players at Arsenal not turning up and not performing at the level that you expect, you have to question that and you have to wonder where they were.”
Arsenal entered this contest despite a number of underwhelming performances. Their performance at Ethiad drew praise, but if they had been more clinical it would have been easy for them to leave the competition with at least a point. Goalscorer Kai Havertz missed a golden chance to equalize in stoppage time.
Arsenal’s defeat means they could relinquish top spot on Wednesday night (Image: Getty)
The top two teams will now be separated on goal difference next weekend, but Deeney does not envisage a scenario in which City and Arsenal win all their remaining games.
“Every Premier League game has become a bit more difficult for City, but I think there’s still a bit of a twist between Arsenal and Manchester City,” he said.
Regarding Arsenal’s upcoming games, he added: “Fulham, West Ham, Burnley, Crystal Palace. Normally you would say the job is done and you know they’re going to win. But West Ham have a bit of a run and are fighting for their lives. Fulham and Marco Silva have had a strange season where they haven’t really done anything.”
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Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+ and Ultimate TV packages
Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundles to include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, plus 135 channels and complete coverage of the Premier League and EFL from Sky.
Sky has over 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more, with at least 215 of them live from the top flight, along with F1, darts and golf.
