Bukayo Saka is convinced this will be the season that Arsenal beat Manchester City to capture the Premier League title.
Saka made the claim following Arsenal’s impressive 2-0 Champions League win against Paris Saint-Germain at the Emirates.
Arsenal’s stand-in captain Saka doubled the hosts’ advantage with 10 minutes of the first half remaining after Kai Havertz had headed in the opener.
The statement win, against a side that reached the semi-finals of the Champions League last season, came three days after a stoppage-time victory over Leicester which took Arsenal level on points with rivals City, one point behind Premier League leaders Liverpool.
Arsenal have finished runners-up to Pep Guardiola’s side for the past two seasons, but when asked if the Gunners are ready to deliver their first league title since 2004, Saka, speaking on CBS, replied: “I don’t want to put too much pressure on us, but I do think this is the year.
“We have been close for the past two years and we are getting closer, but, yes, hopefully this will be the year.
“There is a lot of hunger in my belly. In previous years we have finished runners-up, but that spirit in me is that I want to win this season and I believe in myself a lot.”
‘Arsenal showed their quality against PSG’
After opening their Champions League campaign with a goalless draw at Atalanta, Arsenal fired a warning to their European rivals with a win that rarely looked in doubt.
Saka continued: “When I was speaking with the boys in the team talk before the game I made sure that I said, ‘Today we need to make a big statement’.
“When we have played in Europe against the big teams we haven’t always shown our full qualities and our usual standards, but we showed that at home.”
‘CL a long journey, focus now on PL’
The victory lifted Arsenal to eighth in the table of this season’s rejigged format. The top eight clubs qualify automatically for the knockout stages, with those finishing in ninth to 24th contesting a two-legged play-off to reach the last 16.
“It’s too early [to look at the table],” said Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. “Everyone has to play a lot of different and difficult games, home and away, and we have to adapt to that.
“We still don’t know how many points we need. The only thing you can focus on is the performance, try to win our own games and we did it.
“We all want to be at the very top to play less games and to have the capacity to have better draws. It’s going to be a long journey, but now the focus is on the Premier League.”
Arteta’s side return to action in the Premier League with a home match against winless Southampton on Saturday.
‘City know Arsenal are creeping on their shoulder’
Sky Sports’ Gary Neville expects Arsenal and Man City to be the ones fighting for the Premier League title come the end of the season and their rivalry is already hotting up.
Asked about the title race, Neville said: “It was good last year, I think it’s going to be good this year. I think City know that there’s someone creeping up on their shoulder.
“We knew it when City were chasing us all those years ago when I was sort of retiring.
“You knew that they were getting closer every single year with the signings, with their stability and their consistency and their confidence getting better.
“There’s no doubt that Arsenal are on their shoulder.
“Pep Guardiola is smelling and feeling the challenge. He wants this challenge. He loves to overcome this type of challenge.
“They don’t want to give in City, they don’t want to make it easy for them.
“But I like the way in which it is going to pan out. I think we’re going to have a really good title race this season.”
Analysis: Has Saka gone too early?
Sky Sports’ Zinny Boswell:
Everyone knows Arsenal are in a strong position to dethrone Manchester City, but does that mean you have to say, ‘this is the year’? Bukayo Saka has gone early with his prediction.
It is a refreshing change from the usual response a question of this nature receives – “we’re just taking each game as it comes” – and puts a marker down for his team-mates.
Saka, after all, is stepping into the role of understudy captain. He spoke after wearing the armband in a dominant 2-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League. After making a statement on the pitch, he wanted to make one off it.
It is a reflection of the growing confidence under Mikel Arteta at Arsenal, who are fast becoming the Premier League’s new mentality monsters. This, of course, was the epithet of the last team to beat City to the title.
We are, however, only in October and six games into the Premier League season. There is a very long road ahead and these words are unlikely to be forgotten.
You can imagine them being pinned up in the City dressing room as a source of extra motivation for the champions four years running.
This rivalry is only getting more fascinating as the story develops and Saka’s comments add an extra bit of spice. You can bet Pep Guardiola will be asked about it ahead of the weekend.
The only concern is that it motivates City more than it motivates Arsenal.
Come the end of the season, if Arsenal win the title, this will be but a footnote on a glorious campaign. But if the Gunners fall short again, these words will come back to haunt Saka.
Arsenal’s next six fixtures…
Saturday October 5: Southampton (H) – Premier League, kick-off 3pm
Saturday October 19: Bournemouth (A) – Premier League, kick-off 5.30pm (live on Sky Sports)
Tuesday October 22: Shakhtar Donetsk (H) – Champions League, kick-off 8pm
Sunday October 27: Liverpool (H) – Premier League, kick-off 4.30pm (live on Sky Sports)
Wednesday October 3: Preston North End (A) – Carabao Cup, kick-off 7.45pm
Saturday November 2: Newcastle (A) – Premier League, kick-off 12.30pm