Arsenal ‘have no world class players’ as Rooney agreement reached over ‘ideal son-in-laws’ | OneFootball

Former Tottenham star Rafael van der Vaart says Arsenal “do not have any world class players” and insist they would all crumble under the pressure if they played for Real Madrid.

The Gunners gave up a two-goal lead against rock bottom Wolves on Wednesday in a huge blow to their Premier League title chances having been held 1-1 by Brentford last week.

It means the title is now in the hands of rivals Manchester City as Pep Guardiola’s side welcome Newcastle to the Etihad on Sunday night ahead of Arsenal’s trip to Tottenham on Sunday.

Ahead of that game, Van der Vaart stuck the knife into the Gunners, claiming that while they have “stars” in their team none of them can be considered “world class” as they don’t have the “attitude” required.

“Arsenal do not have any world class players – I agree with Wayne Rooney,” van der Vaart told Sky Bet.

“Perhaps it is better to say that Arsenal have ‘stars’ in their team – they have really good players, but nobody is world class.

“To be a world class footballer, it’s not just about your performances, you need the attitude on the pitch.

“When I look at this Arsenal team, they are all ‘Ideal son-in-laws,’ as we say in Dutch – they can play well but I don’t think any would succeed if they went to Real Madrid because the mentality is much harder and there is a lot more pressure.”

Rooney made the claim ahead of the Wolves draw on Wednesday after insisting ex-players like Martin Keown are “killing” the Gunners with their comments.

Rooney added: “They have so much quality, Arsenal. I don’t think they have that superstar but they can win games and they’ve shown that over the last three years.

“Arsenal haven’t got an absolutely world-class player, a superstar that they pin everything on, but what we’ve seen is they know how to win games.

“Of course Man City can still win it. There’s still a third of the season left to go so anything can happen, but I think Arsenal will win it.

“I think they’re too strong and powerful. I think they win it because of Mikel Arteta, he’s shown the pressure in previous years but he’s handling it spot on this season.

“Man City will run them close but I just can’t see them winning every game and Arsenal dropping that many points.”

Rooney may have changed his mind after the Wolves disaster and while Van der Vaart didn’t make a title prediction, he did suggest it would be too difficult for Arsenal to win the quadruple or even the treble as they battle on four fronts.

“I don’t think Arsenal are strong enough to compete on all fronts and challenge for the treble or quadruple,” he said.

“Obviously, when you are still in all competitions the hope is there but to win everything, that is too difficult.”