Arsenal's Premier League title credentials questioned after 1-1 draw against Brentford
Former Premier League striker Gabby Agbonlahor has questioned Arsenal's title credentials following their draw against Brentford. The Gunners could only secure a 1-1 draw against Thomas Frank's Brentford at the Emirates on Saturday.
January signing Leandro Trossard gave the Gunners a 1-0 lead in the 66th minute but Brentford came back into the game eight minutes later as Toney scored his 13th league goal of the season.
Although the Bees' equalizer was a huge talking point and should not have stood, Gabby Agbonlahor has claimed that the north London side do not look as convincing as they used to be.
The former Aston Villa striker has claimed that the Gunners need Gabriel Jesus back as soon as possible. He told talkSPORT:
“Arsenal today, and last week against Everton, this is the first time I’m starting to think that they don’t look as convincing. Today, it looked quite easy for Brentford to stop Arsenal. It’s a bit of a worry for Arsenal and Mikel Arteta needs Gabriel Jesus back.
“The scary thing for Arsenal fans is that Manchester City can be on top of the league on goal difference if they win their games tomorrow against Aston Villa and against Arsenal on Wednesday."
The former England striker has also backed Manchester City to return to the title race and has urged Mikel Arteta's side to pick up their game. He added:
“That’s a scary thought for the fans that have been so confident. Players have got to turn up. Martinelli has been the same the past few weeks. Trossard came on and scored and he did well.
“It’s just looking like Arsenal now are not looking convincing for me. I think Manchester City will come back."
Following their draw against Brentford, the Gunners now lead the Premier League table by six points over Manchester City. They still have to play Pep Guardiola's side twice this season and will host the Cityzens on Wednesday.
Former referee claims Brentford's equalizer against Arsenal should have been ruled out
Former referee Chris Foy has claimed that Brentford's equalizer should not have stood.
The Gunners were victims of a blunder as Video Assistant Referee (VAR) Lee Mason forgot to draw lines to check offside for the Bees' equalizer.
PGMOL representative Chris Foy explained that a possible foul was looked at after Ivan Toney had put the ball in the net. However, the VAR did not review an offside claim against Christian Norgaard. He said:
"However, in the build-up to the goal, Christian Norgaard — whose cross it is that Toney heads in — is in an offside position.
"However, the truth is that VAR didn’t fully investigate with the lines. The lines, simply, didn’t go down. And that counts as human error. Had the lines gone down the goal would have been disallowed for offside."