‘They won’t even be in top four’: Paul Merson says Man Utd won’t win title with 24-year-old after Wolves game

Arsenal opened their Premier League championship defense over the weekend, defeating Nottingham Forest 2-1 at the Emirates, with Eddie Nketiah scoring the game’s first goal.

With Gabriel Jesus out injured, the 24-year-old has been charged with being the primary man up top, but Merson has warned that ‘I don’t see him firing Arsenal to the title’.

The former Highbury hero even predicted that if Mikel Arteta’s side falters in the Premier League this season, ‘they won’t even be in the top four,’ according to Sky Sports.

That would be a tragedy for the London club, since many expect them to be the closest challengers to Manchester City this season.

This campaign has put a lot of strain on the team, with Merson revealing his opinions on Nketiah after he opened his account against Forest.

“Eddie Nketiah never lets Arsenal down, which is a big thing,” Merson added.

“The management believes in him. But I don’t see him leading Arsenal to the title. He’s the type of player you bring in for three or four games and then take him out.

“I expect Arsenal to challenge Manchester City for the title, but if they don’t perform well, they won’t even be in the top four.” That’s how difficult this league is. There are no freebies.”

Nketiah requires more faith.
Nketiah appears to be incapable of doing anything correctly. If he’s scoring, on the bench, having a horrible run of form, or there’s talk of his being replaced, Darren Bent has asked for’respect to be put on his name’.

There has always been a shadow of doubt over his head, and here is his time to prove those people wrong.

Because Jesus won’t be back for a while, Nketiah knows he’ll be leading the line for a while, and this is his chance to ensure that when the Brazil international returns, he’ll be on the bench rather than starting.