‘I just think…’ – Rooney makes Premier League title claim after Man City beat Arsenal in League Cup final | OneFootball

Wayne Rooney still expects Arsenal to win the Premier League title from here despite losing to second-placed Man City in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.

The Gunners were undone by two quick-fire Nico O’Reilly goals in the second half against the Citizens at Wembley in the Carabao Cup final.

A fumble from Kepa Arrizabalaga in the Arsenal net allowed O’Reilly an easy header from close range to open the scoring on the hour mark before he converted a Matheus Nunes cross just four minutes later.

Some fans and pundits think the momentum and boost from their win at Wembley will give Man City the impetus to go on and win the Premier League.

Arsenal are still nine points ahead of Pep Guardiola’s side but Man City have a game in hand and will host the Gunners at the Etihad Stadium next month.

Assuming they win their game in hand and beat Arsenal at the Etihad, Man City will still need the Gunners to drop points in at least one more match, while they have to stay perfect for the rest of the season.

And Rooney thinks Arsenal are “too efficient” to let their title chances slip from here and doesn’t see the Carabao Cup final as being a game-changer.

When asked how big Man City’s win will be for the Premier League title race, Rooney replied on his BBC podcast: “I don’t think it will.

“Arsenal are still in a very good position, as good a position as you can be at this stage of the season.

“For Man City to catch them I think they have to win every game and Arsenal drop seven points. City will need to beat them at home as well.

“So I think it’s a tough ask. You never know but I just think Arsenal need to dust themselves down and move on from this quickly.

“I’m sure they will go back to winning games and see the title out. I just think Arsenal are too good, too efficient and too strong defensively to let it slip from here.”

Jamie Carragher thinks Arsenal are lacking “something really special in the attack” but reckons they will still win the Premier League this season.

Carragher said on Sky Sports: “Man City have let themselves down with a couple of results of late, and there’s enough breathing space for Arsenal right now [for this to] not affect them too much mentally.

“In terms of the Premier League, they’ve got a great lead. Yes, if they lose at Man City, it could be on. Of course, it could be, but if [the gap] was a lot tighter it would play into it a little bit more.

“Arsenal have been the best team in the league. They’ve only lost four games out of 50 [in all competitions], let’s not get too carried away, let’s not forget that.

“And in the Champions League, they’re on the right side of the draw, and they’ve got a great opportunity [to reach the final].

“But what we saw today, and one of the criticisms I have of Arsenal as a team… is that they lack something really special in the attack.

“They lack a world-class talent who could have just turned that game forward. They definitely lack that.”