Steven Gerrard may no longer play against Arsenal on the pitch, but the former Liverpool midfielder wasn’t shy with his words on Saturday about the Gunners following the club’s 1-0 defeat at Stoke City.
[ MORE: PL roundup -- Man United rolls, Arsenal stumbles at Stoke ]
The ex-Reds skipper -- turned BT Sport pundit -- went off on Arsene Wenger’s side after the loss, and stated that the London side cannot be considered Premier League title contenders.
“They don’t compete well enough, they’re not solid enough, they’re wide open to counter attacks,” Gerrard said. “They got away with one here, it was a fantastic save from Petr Cech.
“You see it here on the edge of the box, one missed tackle, then he drives into the midfield, (Hector) Bellerin’s late on the press, (Alex) Oxlade-Chamberlain’s tackle is weak, (Granit) Xhaka doesn’t want to know and he skips past Bellerin again.”
Gerrard was describing the build up to Stoke’s lone goal on the day, which came through loanee Jese Rodriguez less than two minutes into the second half.
The Gunners, who conceded last three a week ago in their wild 4-3 victory over Leicester City, have looked shaky defensively through their first two outings, and Gerrard believes that the club can ill-afford to continue this way when they face the PL’s elite.
“It’s just weak defending and against better opposition they would get punished for this like Leicester did last week,” Gerrard continued.
“To be a top team and to compete for this Premier League, you have to be really good in possession and Arsenal are, they’re a fantastic team.
“But to be a top, top side you have to compete out of possession, you have to be horrible to play against. Arsenal are too easy to play against.”
[ MORE: Atletico closing on $52 million deal for Chelsea’s Diego Costa ]
Arsenal’s next time out will be against Gerrard’s former club, Liverpool, next Sunday.